Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he will take to ensure that survivors of sexual violence in the Central African Republic have access to lifesaving services that respond to the specific needs of women and girls.

The UK remains extremely concerned about the grave humanitarian and security situation in the Central African Republic (CAR) and is working closely with international partners and CAR's Transitional Government to bring stability to CAR and ensure the delivery of humanitarian assistance.

We welcome the announcement made by the African Union at the 10-13 June Global Summit to Ending Sexual Violence in Conflict about the deployment of a team of experts to CAR to investigate sexual violence abuses. This will be funded by the UK and Japan.

The decision by Transitional President Samba-Panza to refer CAR to the International Criminal Court is a positive step towards tackling impunity and bringing charges against those most responsible for crimes, including sexual violence.