This report hopes to provide an overview of how the Central African Republic got to where it is now,
as well as to present the means to further our understanding of the current situation. First a genealogy
of the current situation is provided, which is presented in the form of a narrative literature overview
encompassing the postcolonial period. This is followed by a brief account on the main conflict actors
active at the time of writing. The third part of the analysis studies what motivates the behaviour of the
armed groups in the country, using data gathered for the period between January and December 2010,
which have been visualised on a GIS map.
The report builds upon earlier research conducted by IPIS in its Mapping Conflict Motives: Central
African Republic report. Though insecurity is still rampant across the country, the situation has changed
a lot since. In 2008, the conflict zones within the CAR were concentrated in Ouham and Vakaga, with
respectively the APRD and UFDR as main insurgency movement and the FACA as their main opponent.
In 2010, on the contrary, the CPJP and LRA are easily noticed as the most active armed groups. Although
this is seemingly a complete reversal of the situation, closer analysis reveals how present and past
situations are still intrinsically linked to each other.

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