Terrorism & Violent Extremism Continues in Central Africa - UNOCA briefing to UN Security Council

Remarks by Mr. François Louncény Fall, Special Representative and Head of the United Nations Regional Office for Central Africa (UNOCA), on the situation in Central Africa.
The head of the United Nations Regional Office for Central Africa (UNOCA) said today “the scourge of terrorism and violent extremism continues to affect populations of the sub-region and divert governments' resources from much needed development programmes to costly security operations.”
Briefing the Security Council on the Secretary-General’s report on the situation in Central Africa, François Louncény Fall, the Special Representative of the region and head of UNOCA said “Boko Haram and the Lord’s Resistance Army have not stopped their deadly attacks on civilians, committing egregious human rights abuses and causing countless victims.”
On Cameroon, Fall said “the escalation of violence and tensions in the northwest and southwest of Cameroon which is also affected by the activities of Boko Haram and the impact of the crisis in the Central African Republic continues to be a major concern.”
He added “over 20,000 Cameroonian refugees have been recorded on the other side of the border with Nigeria and need help.”
Noting that the crisis in the Central African Republic(CAR) continues to have negative impact on the situation in the sub-region, especially in the neighboring countries where there are many refugees, the Special Representative called on the countries of the region to “more actively participate in the African Initiative both on a political and financial basis.”
He also “strongly” encourage Central African authorities in neighboring countries to “speed up the process of setting up a joint commission which will deal with the issues such as border control and transhumance. I also will continue to focus my effort on mobilizing the African Initiative.”
Screenshot Credit: UN Photo/Manuel Elias