Community members vote to elect spokespeople to advocate for their security needs with the Central government. These representatives make up the community link of the 2-way communication mechanisms CIT is creating between local communities and the State in CAR.

Their role is to amplify local voices and become part of a communication chain that feeds information into the SSR / DDRR process at the national level, as well as relays messages from the government to locals communities displaced in remote areas of the country.

The need for stronger links between Bangui and its provinces was made apparent during the Bangui National Forum (BNF). Still controlling very little of its national territory, the government is making gains with the redeployment of CAR's military in certain pilot zones. The recent political agreement negotiated in Khartoum [1] is another step in the country's progress towards peace. Regrettably, the exclusion of community representatives from the negotiation table missed an opportunity to elevate local leaders working on shifting the balance of power between themselves and armed groups in areas where the government has no presence. Nonetheless, the excitement generated by the new peace deal has to be capitalized on, understanding that dialogue is a reiterative process.

Many people a part of the communication chain between the State and local communities, a link that CIT is hoping to reinforce to help open access to rebel-controlled areas and provide a check on the implementation of the Khartoum agreement to hold both sides accountable to what they signed.

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[1] "Accord politique pour la paix et la reconciliation en Republique Centrafricaine" and its annexes negotiated in Khartoum and signed in Bangui on February 6th, 2019 by the CAR government and 14 armed groups