               United Nations                                                                        S/RES/2566 (2021)
               Security Council                                                    Distr.: General
                                                                                   12 March 2021




               Resolution 2566 (2021)
               Adopted by the Security Council on 12 March 2021

                    The Security Council,
                    Recalling all of its previous resolutions, statements of its President, and press
               statements on the situation in the Central African Republic (CAR),
                     Expressing its grave concern at the deterioration of the situation in the Central
               African Republic due to armed group attacks in advance of and following the election
               of 27 December 2020,
                    Condemning in the strongest terms violations of the Political Agreement on
               Peace and Reconciliation in the CAR (“The Peace Agreement”) and violence
               perpetrated by armed groups and other militias, including violence aiming at
               obstructing the electoral process, incitement to ethnic and religious hatred and
               violence, violations of international humanitarian law and human rights violations
               and abuses, including those committed against children and those involving sexual
               and gender-based violence in conflict, as well as violence directed at civilians from
               specific communities, resulting in deaths, injuries and displacements,
                     Taking note of the decision of the Constitutional Court of the Central African
               Republic of 18 January 2021, ruling on the electoral challenges and proclaiming the
               election of President Touadéra, and calling on all stakeholders to respect the
               Constitutional Court’s decision, reaffirm their commitment to the cons olidation of
               democracy and the rule of law in the Central African Republic and contribute to a
               peaceful and credible conclusion of the electoral process,
                     Welcoming the roadmap for dialogue proposed by President Touadéra and
               calling for concrete steps from the government of the Central African Republic and
               all political actors to engage effectively in dialogue, resolve outstanding issues and
               conclude the electoral process through the organization of legislative and local
               elections, reiterating that only inclusive, free, fair, transparent, credible, peaceful and
               timely elections, undisturbed by disinformation and other forms of manipulation of
               information, can bring lasting stability to the CAR, including through the full, equal
               and meaningful participation of women, reaffirming the importance of the
               participation of the youth, and encouraging the CAR authorities, with the support of
               relevant partners, to promote the participation of internally displaced persons (IDPs)
               and refugees in accordance with the Constitution of the CAR,
                   Urging all signatory parties to the Peace Agreement to fully honour their
               commitments and join the path of dialogue and peace and stressing the urgent and




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               imperative need to end impunity in the CAR and to bring to justice perpetrators of
               violations of international humanitarian law and of violations and abuses of human
               rights, while encouraging the national authorities to continue their efforts to make the
               Truth, Justice, Reparation and Reconciliation Commission operational,
                     Welcoming the communique of the African Union Peace and Security Council
               after its meeting on the CAR on 16 February 2021, also welcoming the meeting of
               Heads of States held in Luanda on 29 January 2021, and encouraging continued and
               coordinated mobilization of the region, in particular the Economic Community of
               Central African States (ECCAS) and the International Conference on the Great Lakes
               Region (ICGLR), aimed at strengthening dialogue, easing tensions and seeking
               concerted political solutions to the crisis,
                     Expressing serious concern about the dire humanitarian situation in the CAR
               and the consequences of the security situation on humanitarian access, condemning
               in the strongest terms increased attacks against humanitarian workers, emphasising
               the current humanitarian needs of more than half of the population of the country,
               including civilians under threat from violence, as well as the alarming situation of
               IDPs and refugees, welcoming the collaboration between MINUSCA, UN agencies,
               the African Union, the World Bank, technical and financial partners of the CAR and
               NGOs to support development and humanitarian efforts in the CAR and their
               adaptation to the COVID-19 pandemic, which has exacerbated existing
               vulnerabilities, and calling on Member States and international and regional
               organisations to respond swiftly to the humanitarian needs identified in the
               humanitarian response plan through increased contributions and to ensure that all
               pledges are honoured in full and in a timely manner,
                     Stressing the valuable role of the Peacebuilding Commission (PBC) in bringing
               strategic advice, providing observations for the Security Council’s consideration, and
               fostering a more coherent, coordinated and integrated approach to international
               peacebuilding efforts, and encouraging relevant partners to support the efforts of the
               CAR authorities through the National Strategy for Recovery and Peace Consolidation
               (RCPCA) to lay the foundation of durable peace in the CAR and sustainable
               development of all regions of the country, to boost peace dividends for the population
               and development projects, including critical investments in infrastructure,
                     Condemning in the strongest terms all attacks, provocations and incitement to
               hatred and violence against MINUSCA and other international forces by armed
               groups or other perpetrators, paying tribute to the personnel of MINUSCA who
               sacrificed their lives in the service of peace, underlining that attacks targeting
               peacekeepers may constitute war crimes, calling on all parties to fully respect their
               obligations under international humanitarian law and urging the CAR authorities to
               work with MINUSCA to enhance the safety and security of MINUSCA’s personnel,
               including in line with resolution 2518 (2020), and to take all possible measures to
               arrest and prosecute perpetrators,
                     Taking note of the Report of the Secretary-General of 16 February 2021
               (S/2021/146), recommending an increase of 2,750 military and 940 police personnel,
               with the aim of enabling the Mission to enhance its capacity to prevent and reverse a
               further deterioration in the security situation while creating space for the political
               process to advance,
                     Reaffirming the basic principles of peacekeeping, such as consent of the parties,
               impartiality, and non-use of force, except in self-defence and defence of the mandate,
               recognising that the mandate of each peacekeeping mission is specific to the need and
               situation of the country concerned, underlining that the mandates that it authorises
               are consistent with the basic principles, reiterating that the Security Council expects


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           full delivery of the mandates it authorises, and recalling in this regard its resolution
           2436 (2018),
                 Taking note of the request of the CAR authorities to lift the arms embargo and
           of the positions expressed by ECCAS and ICGLR, reiterating its readiness to r eview
           the arms embargo measures, through inter alia suspension or progressive lifting, in
           the light of progress achieved on the key benchmarks established by the Security
           Council, and stressing the need for the CAR authorities to ensure physical protection ,
           control, management, traceability, and accountability of weapons, ammunition and
           military equipment transferred to their control,
                 Determining that the situation in the CAR continues to constitute a threat to
           international peace and security in the region,
                Acting under Chapter VII of the Charter of the United Nations,
                1.   Decides to increase the authorized size of MINUSCA’s military
           component by 2,750 and to increase the authorized size of MINUSCA’s police
           component by 940, from the current levels authorized in paragraph 27 of resolution
           2552 (2020);
                 2.    Stresses that these reinforcements are aimed at enhancing MINUSCA’s
           ability to perform its priority mandated tasks in the current evolving context, in
           particular protection of civilians and facilitation of humanitarian access, and at
           enabling the Mission to enhance its capacity to prevent and reverse a further
           deterioration in the security situation while creating space for the political process to
           advance, further stresses that these new capabilities are not a substitute for the
           national authorities’ primary responsibility to advance the peace process and protect
           the population, notes that these reinforcements should be sequenced through a phased
           approach, recalls the importance of cooperation between MINUSCA and the CAR
           authorities in line with its mandate, and requests the Secretary-General to review
           implementation, performance and necessity ahead of each phase as part of the reports
           requested in paragraph 54 of resolution 2552 (2020) and to include in its report of
           11 October 2021 a proposal on the overall configuration of MINUSCA’s Force;
                3.  Requests the Secretary-General to ensure that decisions regarding
           deployment of all personnel to MINUSCA adhere to:
                (i) peacekeeping performance requirements under resolutions 2378 (2017)
                and 2436 (2018), including greater utilisation of the Peacekeeping Capability
                Readiness System (PCRS) to ensure the recruitment and retention of qualified
                uniformed personnel;
                (ii) implementing resolution 2518 (2020), including by taking all appropriate
                measures to enhance the safety and security of MINUSCA’s personnel;
                (iii) implementing resolution 1325 (2000) and subsequent resolutions on
                women, peace, and security, including by seeking to increase the number of
                women in MINUSCA in line with resolution 2538 (2020), and requests further
                that such deployment ensure the full, equal and meaningful participation of
                women in all aspects of operations;
                (iv) the United Nations zero-tolerance policy on sexual exploitation and abuse
                as well as to the provisions of resolution 2272 (2016);
                4.    Decides to remain actively seized of the matter.




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