The United Nations says 170,000 people have been displaced in recent fighting in the Central African Republic (CAR).

On Tuesday, Jens Laerke, the spokesman of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), said at a press conference in Geneva that a UN-led mission found out that fighting among former Seleka rebels and other militants has caused panic among the population in the northwest of the country.

Laerke stated that only 39 percent of the 195-million-dollar humanitarian appeal for 2013 has been covered after three-quarters into the year.

"Additional funding through the appeal is urgently needed," he added.


Meanwhile, the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) said it was providing some 5,500 newly-displaced families in the northwest with emergency assistance.

"UNICEF teams are providing basic but critical supplies: safe water, tarpaulins, blankets, sleeping mats, mosquito nets, jerry cans, and soap. UNICEF has also provided emergency supplies to partners working in health and nutrition, and more supplies are en route," said UNICEF spokeswoman Marixie Mercado in Geneva on Tuesday.


"The majority of the displaced are women and children now living in deplorable conditions without access to [neither] safe water, nor shelter from the elements... At least 250,000 children have lost out on an entire school year, forced marriages and sexual violence against girls is reportedly on the rise, and UNICEF estimates that there are 3,500 children associated with armed groups, up from around 2,000 prior to the conflict.”

Mercado also said preparations were underway for a nationwide measles vaccination campaign, which aims to reach 550,000 children between 6 and 59 months old in all parts of the country.

“It is our intent to -- not just our intent, but all of our partners on the ground to reach all of these children because measles, as you know, is incredibly contagious and it is lethal for children living particularly," Mercado said, adding, "I mean, the conditions that they are in, the displacement, lack of safe water, exposed to all the elements, just extraordinary insecurity. These are horrible and dangerous conditions for children.”

The Seleka rebels, who launched an offensive against the CAR government in December 2012 and finally ousted then President Francois Bozizé in March, have been accused of killing, looting, and raping across the country.

On September 13, CAR President Michel Djotodia dissolved the rebel group, which had brought him to power.

There are many mineral resources, including gold and diamond, in the Central African Republic. However, the country is extremely poor and has faced a series of rebellions and coups since it gained independence in 1960.