Additional Financing to the Central African Republic (CAR) Emergency Food Crisis Response Project

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The Central African Republic (CAR) is among the most fragile countries in the world with a history of recurrent cycles of violence. Following a major security crisis in 2013 that displaced over 25 percent of its 4.9 million people, CAR has embarked on a long recovery process. However, despite the signing of a peace agreement in 2019, conflicts and violence continue to affect the country’s economic performance. Average GDP growth has been low and not inclusive over the past decades. Poverty remains pervasive with an estimated 71 percent of the population living below the international poverty line (US$ 1.90 per day, 2011 PPP) in 2019. The Central African Republic (CAR) continue to face severe food crisis with over 52 percent of the population undernourished, and the COVID-19 pandemic, global food shortages, rising fuel prices, and other import costs are worsening the crisis. The country ranks 120th out of 121 countries on the Global Hunger Index. The crisis is leading to a rise in malnutrition rates and difficulties in accessing enough food, resulting in one of the highest under-five mortality rates in 2021. The crisis is affecting the country's economy as agriculture is a major source of income and employment, and it is projected that the ongoing food insecurity will exacerbate the already high poverty rate.As per the last Integrated Phase Classification (IPC) analysis, during the current period of review (September 2022 to March 2023), 2.7 million people (41 percent of the analyzed population) face high levels of acute food insecurity (IPC Phase 3 or above). Nearly 3 million people (49 percent of the analyzed population) are expected to be in high acute food insecurity (IPC Phase 3 or above) in the April to August 2023 period. This represents a net increase of nearly 300,000 additional people being in IPC3+ in less than one year. By August 2023, the majority of the country's regions are expected to be in either a crisis (IPC3) or emergency (IPC4) state, with regions previously in IPC3 projected to worsen.The proposed Additional financing to the Emergency Food Crisis response is well aligned with the World Bank Group Country Partnership Framework (CPF) in CAR for FY21–25, as well as with the WBG FCV Strategy. CAR is one of the most fragile countries in the world, where the risk of recurrence of conflict is higher if the level of food insecurity is high. Indeed, improved food security will help mitigate some of the spillovers of long years of conflict in the country.The project will be implemented through four components:Component 1: This component will support an accelerated supply response focused on restoring and preserving the productive capacity of farming households to enable continued and expanded production of key staple foods and livestock that is resilient to climate change. It will be have three sub-components:Subcomponent 1.1: Support food production and household nutrition Subcomponent 1.2: Support to seed protection and linkages to market opportunities Subcomponent 1.3: Strengthening hydro-meteorological information for early warning Component 2: Labor-intensive public works for resilience will finance livelihood support programs through labor-intensive public works (LIPW) in six prefectures and in Bangui. The LIPW will provide short-term relief to food-insecure households through cash-for-work activities, while at the same time fostering adaptation to climate change and enhanced resilience to flooding. It will have two subcomponentsSubcomponent 2.1: Rehabilitation and maintenance of small-scale agricultural infrastructuresSubcomponent 2.2: Rehabilitation and maintenance of drainage infrastructure in Bangui Component 3: Project Management and CoordinationComponent 4: Contingent Emergency Response Component