BOULEMBE, Cameroon (AFP) – UN High Commissioner for Refugees Antonio Guterres called on the international community Thursday to ensure the plight of refugees from the Central African Republic is not forgotten.

During a visit Thursday to shelters in Boulembe, Cameroon, housing 1,150 refugees, Guterres urged the world "to give much more importance to the Central African Republic," which he said was "forgotten" in favour of countries such as Afghanistan.

He expressed his wish for "peace to be brought back to the Central African Republic", where a peace process is under way after rebellions and a coup in 2003 by Francois Bozize, now the elected president.

"There needs to be political agreement (...) but the state must take control of the security situation so that refugees can return home and rebuild their future," Guterres said.

Adama Hadja, a spokesperson for refugees, said that Centrafricans no longer wanted food aid, but instead needed farming materials, a health centre and more wells.

Five thousand people, including the 1,150 refugees, have access to just one water well. Many Centrafricans told AFP of their wish to remain permanently in Cameroon.

According to UNHCR figures from December 2009, Cameroon is home to 80,800 Centrafrican refugees in more than 70 locations across the East and Adamaoua regions, along the border with the Central African Republic.

Guterres is due to arrive in the Central African Republic on Friday for a four-day visit.