Touadera sworn in for third term as Central African Republic president

Central African President Faustin-Archange Touadera on Monday pledged to buttress security and peace as he was sworn in for a third term in one of the world's poorest and most volatile countries.

In office since 2016, Touadera was re-elected with 77.90 percent of the vote in a December ballot contested by the opposition and main rival Anicet George Dologuele, who alleged massive fraud.

The inauguration took place in front of some 20,000 spectators at a stadium in the capital Bangui in the presence of Burundi's President Evariste Ndayishimiye, who holds the rotating presidency of the African Union, and the leaders of Congo, Gabon and the Comoros.

Touadera said in a speech after his investiture that he wanted to "consolidate peace, security, reconciliation, and national unity".

CAR's new constitution, adopted by referendum in 2023, allowed Touadera to stand again for a third straight term.

'Peace is returning'

Sandwiched between war-wracked Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) among other countries, the security situation in CAR has eased since the civil war of the 2010s but it remains "fragile," according to Touadera.

"I reached out to the armed groups ... and peace is returning thanks to this willingness to engage in dialogue," Touadera said in January.

"I will continue this extended hand policy," he added.

Mathilde Tarif, a researcher at Belgium's Ghent University said Touadera faced multiple challenges.

"One... will be his ability to maintain stable domestic security forces," she said.

The success of this term "will depend greatly on the effectiveness of the partnerships he has established with Rwanda, the United Arab Emirates, and Russia," on which "he relies to continue stabilising his regime," Tarif said.

Today, nearly 90 percent of the territory is under government control, compared with 80 percent held by armed groups in 2021, according to various analysts.