1 October 2007
A senior official from the Central African Republic (CAR) today welcomed the recent establishment of a United Nations-mandated, multidimensional presence in the country but said it must be accompanied by assistance to bolster national capacity there.
Addressing the General Assembly's annual high-level debate, CAR Minister for Foreign Affairs Côme Zoumara hailed the adoption of Security Council resolution 1778. Unanimously passed on 25 September, that text set up a mission to help protect civilians and facilitate humanitarian aid to thousands of people uprooted due to insecurity in CAR, Chad and neighbouring Sudan.
At the same time, he stressed that the operation, to be known as MINURCAT, must be accompanied by real support to reinforce the CAR's own institutional capacities.
The conflict in Darfur, as well as the presence of rebels, armed groups and roadblocks and the proliferation of light arms, has combined to foster a "generalized and permanent" insecurity in the region, he said.
As a result, CAR has faced recurrent crises which chronically tear at the country's economic fabric, exacerbating conditions of poverty endured by the country's people, he said.
On the general economic situation, he said CAR was working to develop its economy in a manner consistent with the principles of sustainable development, engaging in regional cooperation toward that end.
The CAR is open to private and public investments from other States, he said, thanking those which have responded positively, including France, the United States, China, Japan, Germany, the United Kingdom, the Russian Federation, and a number of countries in the South.
Thanking also international financial institutions such as the African Development Bank, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF), he appealed to them to "turn a new page on the environment and economies of poor countries."
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