Climate risk country profile: Central African Republic

This climate risk profile is intended to serve as a public good to facilitate upstream country diagnostics, policy dialogue, and strategic planning by providing comprehensive overviews of trends and projected changes in key climate parameters, sector-specific implications, relevant policies and programs, adaptation priorities and opportunities for further actions. The Central African Republic, herein CAR, is a landlocked country in Central Africa. CAR is a least-developed country and one of the poorest countries in the world and continues to be impacted by its long history of conflict, poor governance, weak institutions. The CAR submitted its Nationally-Determined Contribution to the UNFCCC in 2016 and its Second National Communication to the UNFCCC (2015), which outlines the country’s vision in building an economy that is diversified and sustainable, which also adheres to the country’s needs to protect its environmental resources. 

The Central African Republic is at risk to numerous natural hazards, which are dominated by floods, wildfires and droughts. Temperatures across CAR are expected to increase and projections show a change in annual mean temperature from 3.1°C to 5.7°C by end of the century. An increase in the number of hot days, extreme temperatures are projected as well as a strong increase in the duration of heat waves; a significant decrease in cold spell length is projected. It is generally understood that although annual total precipitation amounts for CAR are not likely to change dramatically, however rainfall is projected to become substantially more variable and with a likely increase in frequency and intensity of extreme rainfall events. The country’s drought risk will decrease.