Central African Republic

Central African Republic

The Central African Republic (République centrafricaine) was originally inhabited by tribes speaking Adamawa and Bantu languages. The region was largely free of European intrusion, but in the early 19th century Muslim traders began arriving. Initially amiable and peaceful, after 1850 the region began to see an influx of armed slave traders. Between 1860 and 1910 most of the eastern population was forcibly exported. During the Scramble for Africa, France won out over Belgium, Germany and Great Britain for control of the region, incoporating it into what was then called French Congo. Meanwhile the slave trade continued among Africans, with the more powerful tribes subjugating the weaker ones, although it gradually began to decline after 1920. On 1 December 1958 the region of Ubangi-Shari became an autonomous territory within the French Community and took the name Central African Republic; it was granted full independence on 30 August 1960.

The country has seen a number of regime changes since independence, the first merely two years after it was originally achieved. A one-party state was established in 1962 by David Dacko, who was subsequently overthrown in a military coup led by Colonel Jean-Bédel Bokassa in 1965. Bokassa declared himself President for Life in 1972, and later Emperor Bokassa I of the Central African Empire on 4 December 1976. Accusations of cannibalism and feeding political opponents to animals kept in his personal zoo prompted France to intervene militarily in 1979, re-establishing Dacko as president (once again under a Republic). Two years later, he was again overthrown by General André Kolingba, who suspended the constitution and ruled over the country until 1990. Under intense international and local pressure Kolingba resisted the holding of free elections until 1993. A new constitution was approved in December 1994 following victory of the country's first elected president Ange-Félix Patassé. His presidency was unpopular with the military, sparking protests, ethnic tension, vandalism, and finally outright mutiny in 1996-1997. In January 1997, the Bangui Peace Accords were signed, providing for the deployment of an inter-African military mission. It would later be replaced by a UN peacekeeping force, the Mission des Nations Unies en RCA (MINURCA).

Ethnic and political violence once again erupted in May 2001, sparked by a failed coup attempt in Bangui, and leading to two years of violence in the capital that resulted in the destruction of many homes and thousands killed. Former chief-of-staff François Bozizé, who had fled to Chad after being sacked in October 2001, returned with a group of approximately one thousand fighters to sieze Bangui in 2002, and achieving full control over the country in March 2003, while Patassé was away at a conference in Niger. Along with Abel Goumba, Bozizé formed a union government that remained in power until a general election was held in March and May 2005. During his tenure as leader of the junta, Bozizé created his Garde Republicaine of devoted troops who would later be accused of committing multiple atrocities against civilians. Accusations soon arose that the president of Chad (Idriss Déby) had sent fighters and military assistance to Bozizé in an effort to secure his grip over the country. Relations between the two nations were strengthened during this period.

The Central African Bush War began in November 2004, ultimately pitting a number of armed rebel organizations and smaller militia groups against the military government of the Republic. Most prominent among the anti-government factions was the Union des Forces Démocratiques pour le Rassemblement (UFDR), but a number of other organizations also fought in the war, including L’Armée Populaire pour la restauration de la démocratie (APRD), the Groupe d'action patriotique pour la liberation de Centrafrique (GAPLC), Le Mouvement des libérateurs centrafricains pour la justice (MLCJ), the Front démocratique Centrafricain (FDC), and the Union des Forces Républicaines (UFR). A peace agreemnt was signed in February 2007 by the political leaders of the FDC (FDPC), but hostilities continued against the government by the remaining dissident forces. The APRD signed a peace accord in May 2008, bringing the CPJP to the negotiation table in August of that year. Fighting still continued among rebel factions for control of diamond fields well into 2011, until an agreement was reached in June.

In December 2012, president Bozizé faced accusations of acting in bad faith and violating terms of the peace agreements, sparking renewed hostilities from an alliance of (mostly Muslim) militia groups identifying as Séléka ("coalition") that resulted the overthrow of the presidency and siezure of Bangui on 24 March 2013. Rebel leader Michel Am-Nondokro Djotodia declared himself president but was forced to resign the next year for failing to quell sectarian violence, although not before the formation of another alliance of militia groups calling themselves "Anti-balaka" that identified as predominantly Christian. The latter have been accused of committing atrocities against Muslim civilians and forced conversions. The country became divided between supporters of the government, ex-Séléka members that had refused to disarm, and the Anti-balaka movement.

Catherine Samba-Panza was elected president in January 2014 by a National Transitional Council, leading to a ceasefire being signed in July. Anti-balaka supporters retained control over the southwest, while ex-Séléka controlled the northeast. In December 2015, Séléka leaders declared the independence of the Republic of Logone, aka Dar El-Kuti, as a autonomous state for the Muslim minority population of the Republic. Logone has no international recognition.

New presidential elections were held for the Central African Republic in December 2015, with Faustin-Archange Touadéra declared the president after two subsequent runoffs in February and March 2016. However, large sections of the country did not take part in these elections due to the continued sectarian violence. Touadéra was reelected in 2020, but the country is still unstable and the president has sought military assistance from the Wagner Group, whose private military contractors have acted as his personal praetorian guard. Rwanda has also lent military assistance to the Touadéra government.

The Forces Armées Centrafricaines (FACA) consist of the Ground Forces, Air Force, the Gendarmerie Nationale, the Sûreté Nationale (National Police), and the Garde Républicaine (Republican Guard), also called the Garde présidentielle, although technically the latter falls fully under control of the president. The Groupement spécial chargé de la protection républicaine (GSPR), aka "Alpha Group," has received specialized training from the Wagner Group, and almost all of its personnel are from the Ngbaka tribe. Owing to years of internal strife, the FACA is considered one of the weakest armed forces on the continent.

Camouflage Patterns of the Central African Republic

• During the short-lived reign of "Emperor" Jean-Bédel Bokassa, members of his Imperial Guard were frequently seen wearing a "leopard spot" pattern camouflage uniform. The design is very similar to, if not precisely the same, as that worn by units in Zaire.

• Another unique pattern observed under the reign of Bokassa was this "yellow lizard" design, having bright green and ochre-colored stripes over a sandy background. It is unknown whether the use of this design continued into the post-Empire period.

• Variations of the French tenue de leópard or lizard pattern with more conventional color palettes have been worn by some various units throughout the 1970s and 1980s, although these appear to have become obsolete in the modern era.

• A faithful copy of the American-designed m81 woodland camouflage design has been worn by members of the FACA since at least 2005.

• Additionally, other copies of woodland, having slightly different color palettes and mostly produced in Asian factories, have also been worn at various times by the FACA.

• FACA personnel have worn DPM camouflage uniforms on several occasions, although to what extent is not clear. Photographs from 2007 and 2012 document its use, although the style of uniform is unlike the typical French designs worn by this country, and may have been donated by another country. Wildlife Rangers in the Chinko Nature Reserve also wear DPM pattern camouflage fatigues in the modern era.

• FACA has worn the French CE woodland camouflage design since at least 2005 and it has served as the standard uniform of most armed forces personnel until around 2022. The CE pattern is still found among members of the armed forces, as well as dissident forcesm, although it appears the intention is to gradually retire the design in favor of the "worms" pattern adopted in 2022.

• Elements of the Garde républicaine (Republican Guard), also known as the Garde présidentielle, adopted an Asian-made copy of the US tricolor desert pattern at some point during the early 2000s, but did not retain it for very long.

• Around 2010, it appears use of some version of the old tenue de leópard or "lizard" design was revived for certain units. The design has remained in use, although not universally, and has been observed in a number of parades well into the modern era.

• Circa 2018, the Groupement spécial chargé de la protection républicaine (GSPR) of the Republican Guard adopted a grey-dominant horizontal pattern consisting of a weblike mesh of olive green printed over a grey base, with interspersed designs in a reddish-brown color throughout. At a distance, the pattern is quite reminiscent of a similar pattern attributed to Cote d'Ivoire in the 1970s & 1980s, and in fact was adopted by that country's Ministry of Water and Forests in 2013. This design remained in service until around 2020.

• The personnel seen here, members of Alpha Group (a specialized executive protection unit trained by the Russia|Wagner Group]], and falling under the command of the president) are wearing a version of the old Soviet berezhka (birch) pattern camouflage. This was first seen circa 2019.

• Circa August 2020, a supply of uniforms in the same "fractal" camouflage design adopted by Sudan in 2017 were presented to one or more units of the FACA as a donation.

• The pattern seen here was adopted around 2020. It is based on US "three color desert" but has a mostly grey color palette and has continued to see service into the present era.

• A completely new camouflage design was adopted by FACA in early 2022, although by no means has it become universal in its distribution. The design incorporates irregular "worm" shapes, using medium brown, light green, and khaki on a sand-colored background. Many high ranking officers have appeared wearing the pattern as well as certain elite units of the Army and Gendarmerie Nationale.

• A variation of the above pattern features black, russet-brown, and khaki shapes on a light tan background, although it is only seen on occasion and may not be universally issued. This design may be limited to use by the Territorial Infantry Battalions.

• A variation of the FACA "worms" pattern was adopted by the Sûreté Nationale in 2022. This version has a blue-dominant colorway, consisting of dark blue, medium blue, and grey shapes on a pale blue background. In different light, the design often appears more grey-dominant.

Camouflage of Insurgent and Anti-government Forces

Beginning with the Central African Bush War in 2004, dissident militia and rebel groups have sourced war materiel, including combat uniforms, but whatever sources were available at the time. Historically, many groups in the CAR simply wore looted or repurposed government issue camouflage clothing in the same designs worn by the opposing Republican forces. However, a large volume of camouflage clothing in a variety of designs has also been documented in use with virtually all of the rebel groups that have operated within the borders of the Central African Republic, although rarely to any degree that a particular group might be associated with it. Rather, more often than not, individuals within the group are found wearing a mixture of ex-government military clothing and items sourced from neighboring countries or sources supporting the dissident cause.

• When the Séléka militants seized control of Bangui in March 2013, many were wearing camouflage uniforms from Chad, not only the same patterns but literally bearing the same markings of the ANT (Chad Armed Forces). One can only assume they were provided by sympathetic sources in the neighboring country.

• The Unité pour la paix en Centrafrique (Union for Peace in Central Africa) or UPC, a rebel organization active since 2014 and formed from militants who split ideologically from Séléka, has utilized a number of camouflage designs among its combatants and commanders. The following is a sample of those documented in use, without any apparent affiliation to specific units or purposes. The movement was dissolved in July 2025.