UNRELENTING religious violence across the Central African Republic (CAR) is forcing Muslims out of the country in droves. Aid agencies are now warning that an exodus of Muslim traders and cattle-herders could lead to catastrophic famine and economic collapse. “Traders have mostly left as there is little security at the markets, the cattle-herders have fled to the bush so there is very little meat, making it extremely expensive for us to buy. With few means of making money, we are in trouble,” said Elodie Nguerele, a Christian who teaches in Bangui, the capital.

Less than a quarter of the wholesalers who import food from neighbouring countries remain in Bangui, according to aid agencies. Attacks on Muslims may encourage the rest to flee. Residents in Bangui say that supplies of sugar and flour are critically short. The prices for staples are soaring. According to the UN, 1.3m of the country’s 4.6m people need food aid urgently.

The CAR has been in chaos since Muslim rebels seized power a year ago and then lost it around December as Christian militias fought back. French troops struggled to hold the ring, and the governments of neighbouring countries called for the coup leader, Michel Djotodia, to go—which he did. Since then, revenge attacks on the Muslim minority community, including summary executions, torture and looting, have become more common. Muslim residents have fled many north-western towns, such as Bossangoa and Bouca, where there had been a sizeable and well-established Muslim presence.