The process of peace and pacification is a work that requires long breath, like a marathon

Even this morning in my speech to the World Bank, I said it was important to undertake a study of the causes and the roots of the conflict in the Central African Republic. There are several factors. There is poverty, exclusion of communities and regions. Those who feel excluded react.

Peace needs and takes time, it needs and takes caution, it needs and takes patience after 30 years of terrorism and violence.

The process of cultural change is a long and difficult one.

Having come here, being enslaved, then being resilient and working their way up, always being in survival mode and eventually naturalisation, getting citizenship status and getting their rights back – all this has been a long process, but a very painful one.

We often think of peace as the absence of war, that if powerful countries would reduce their weapon arsenals, we could have peace. But if we look deeply into the weapons, we see our own minds- our own prejudices, fears and ignorance. Even if we transport all the bombs to the moon, the roots of war and the roots of bombs are still there, in our hearts and minds, and sooner or later we will make new bombs. To work for peace is to uproot war from ourselves and from the hearts of men and women. To prepare for war, to give millions of men and women the opportunity to practice killing day and night in their hearts, is to plant millions of seeds of violence, anger, frustration, and fear that will be passed on for generations to come.

Africa has been through deep wounds which have marked her history heavily. However, there is a need for a healing of the memory. Therefore one must commit oneself firmly in a dynamic of hope and resurrection.

The Art of Peace is not easy. It is a fight to the finish, the slaying of evil desires and all falsehood within

Peace is a challenge and a necessity for everyone, but especially in the regions where we suffer more.

However, my country remains concerned about the inadequacy of funding for programs and the absence of development actors in areas where conditions have become favorable for return. I therefore launch from this podium a heartfelt plea for greater mobilization of resources in favor of the Central African Republic, my country, which only wants peace, security, and stability.

Pacifism simply is not a matter of calm looking on; it is hard work.

We deal with this fragile, delicate process of peace suffused with hope and, I am sure, with sang-froid and wisdom. Terrorist organizations and extremist Islamic states wish to sabotage the process, as do extremist elements in our midst. The atmosphere is charged; things are not easy -- not only because murderous extremism is striving to destroy this peace, but also because even those who love peace are apprehensive, and both camps still have unhealed wounds and fresh memories. The blood still cries out to us.

With the destructive power of today's weapons, keeping the peace is not just a goal; it's a sacred obligation. But maintaining peace requires more than sincerity and idealism—more than optimism and good will. As you know well, peace is a product of hard, strenuous labor by those dedicated to its preservation. It requires realism, not wishful thinking.

The tempest in which the African continent lives brings to mind that, for all the projects discussed during this Synod, one must remember that the African wager is a long term wager.