Peace talks in the Central African Republic, where a civil conflict has raged since 2013, came to a halt on Sunday with no tangible results.
The negotiations began on Monday, but no rebel organisations were invited, and the opposition has decided to boycott the event.
Following his contentious reelection, President Faustin Archange Touadera committed to host the so-called Republican Dialogue for reconciliation in late 2020.
On March 15, he surprised everyone by announcing that talks with the opposition and civic society will begin on March 21.
However, the agenda for the negotiations was unclear and lacking specific objectives.
According to regional experts, the discussion conference appeared to be increasingly aimed at appeasing the international community, which has placed the Central African Republic, one of the world’s poorest countries, on a steady diet of aid.
There were difficult times during meetings this week at the National Assembly in Bangui, particularly when a constitutional reform permitting a president to run for a third term was discussed at the outset. Later, the plan was withdrawn.
Richard Filkota, the dialogue’s chair, announced 600 recommendations during the closing ceremony.
One of the recommendations was to lift the UN arms embargo, which was imposed in 2013 after a coalition of armed groups ousted Francois Bozize’s regime and sparked civil war in the nation.
All of the recommendations are vital, since the president has always stated that dialogue will bring peace to this country “Albert Yaloke Mokpeme, the president’s spokesman, told reporters.
However, Thierry Vircoulon, a Central African expert at the French Institute of International Relations, stated the recommendations were inadequate “will not be carried out.
“Even if the government wanted to implement them, it doesn’t have the time or the money,” he added.
