A/HRC/42/61 health policy. She urges partners to make this issue a priority in their support to the Central African Republic in order to provide rapid solutions aimed at increasing the number of health centres, particularly outside the capital, expanding the number of high-quality training courses for health personnel and providing care for free. 74. To achieve lasting peace, priority investment is required in actions that can ease tensions and sow the seeds for national development. The Independent Expert stresses that such efforts should be people-centred and give rise to social justice. The National Recovery and Peacebuilding Plan reflects the importance of the measures to be taken. Roads are being built in the east and north-west of the country. In addition to road infrastructure, major projects are planned for the health and agriculture sectors. From 2014 to 2018, some 19,000 people, 39 per cent of them women, participated in labour-intensive work projects in seven prefectures. However, such projects should be replicated throughout the country, and the implementation of the various pillars of the National Recovery and Peacebuilding Plan should be expedited. IV. Humanitarian situation A. Observations 75. Civilians continue to pay the highest price in the continuing violence. In addition to the difficult living conditions resulting from forced displacement, the presence of armed elements in the camps continues to put displaced persons at high risk of, inter alia, illegal taxation, sexual violence, arbitrary arrests, killings and recruitment of youth and child soldiers. 76. The 65 assessments conducted by humanitarian actors between September 2018 and February 2019 indicate that the humanitarian situation in the country has deteriorated, particularly in the south-eastern regions. Humanitarian actors estimate that 2.9 million people, representing 63 per cent of the country’s population, and 51 per cent of them children, are still in need of humanitarian assistance and protection. In these assessments, protection, health and food security are identified as the most pressing areas of need. 5 77. In March 2019, the United Nations country team launched an urgent appeal for US$ 165 million to respond to the situation. B. Refugees and internally displaced persons 78. The military and political crisis that has afflicted the Central African Republic since 2013 in particular has generated massive population displacement. There are currently 613,031 internally displaced persons and 598,963 refugees in the six neighbouring countries. The Independent Expert was informed that, as a result of improved security in some areas, more than 115,000 refugees had returned to the country spontaneously and that 4,570 had been assisted to return in 2018. During the same period, 257,311 internally displaced persons spontaneously returned to their place of origin or habitual residence. This trend in returns appears to be continuing; in 2019 to date, 407 refugees and 48,915 displaced persons have returned voluntarily. In addition, an increasing number of people appear to be seeking assistance to return home, as the Independent Expert observed in Bangassou. 79. With regard to the legal framework for organizing and managing the voluntary repatriation of Central African refugees from neighbouring countries, the Independent Expert welcomes the signing of tripartite agreements between the Central African authorities, the Governments of Cameroon and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. According to the latter, 5 GE.19-13726 Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, Central African Republic: humanitarian situation and urgent funding requirements, update of 27 March 2019. 13