Chad Country Profile

ACTION AGAINST HUNGER | ACF INTERNATIONAL CHAD

COUNTRY PROFILE

Source: CIA Factbook

BASIC FACTS MODERN HISTORY

Location: Central Africa Chad has been in a state of almost constant war In 2003, refugees from the Darfur region of Sudan President: Idriss Deby since gaining independence from France in 1960. began crossing the border into Chad, and conflicts Turmoil in the country has been based largely on around the border intensified. Both governments Government: Republic ethnic and religious differences stoked by clan ri- accused the other of harboring rebel units, and war Capital: N’Djamena valries—the southern region consists predominantly between Chad and Sudan was officially declared in of Christian farmers, while the northern and eastern December 2005. French Official Languages: regions are mainly Muslim. & Arabic Deby removed constitutional term limits and won In 1965, a tax revolt initiated a long civil war the presidential election in 2006. That same year, Official Currency: CFA between the Muslims of the north and east and the Sudanese and Chadian governments formally Franc the government of Francois Tombalbaye in the agreed not to support armed rebel groups. Though Population: 10.76 million Christian south. Even with support from the French signed, the agreement did not put an end to the government, attempts to end the conflict failed violence along the Chad-Sudan border. Climate: tropical in south; until a military coup in 1975 installed General Felix desert in north In 2010, Deby visited Khartoum, the capital of Su- Malloum, a southerner, as head of state. By 1979, dan, to meet with President Bashir in hopes of end- Life Expectancy: 48.3 years dissent within the government led northern Prime ing the border conflict. Both governments agreed Literacy Rate (age 15 and Minister Hissene Habre to order an attack on the to deploy forces along the Chad-Sudan border to national army, and another civil war began. over): 25.7% restore peace in the region. Ethnic rivalry within the government eventually led Area: 1.284 million km² Even amidst charges of election rigging, fraud, eth- to Habre’s downfall. In 1989, Idriss Deby, one of nic favoritism and corruption involving oil revenues, National Flag: Habre’s leading generals from eastern Chad, fled to Deby has remained in power for 20 years. Fight- Darfur, Sudan, where he staged a series of attacks ing along the Chad-Sudan border continues today, on Habre. In December 1990, Deby and the Patriotic but relations between the Sudanese and Chadian Salvation Movement (MPS), with assistance from governments have evolved with the hopes of finally Libya, gained control of the Chadian government. putting an end to the instability. Presidential elec- tions are scheduled to occur in May 2011.

GEOGRAPHY & CLIMATE

Source: CIA FactBook Chad is the fifth largest country in Africa in terms of landmass. Located in the north-central part of the continent, it is a landlocked country, sharing borders with Libya, Sudan, Central African Repub- lic, Cameroon, Nigeria and Niger. Three climate regions make up the majority of the country—a desert region in the north, an arid region in the center, and a tropical area in the south. Lake Chad is located on the western border and is an important source of water for Chad and surround- Photos: ACF-CHAD, courtesy of S. Hauenstein Swan, 2010; ACF-USA , ing countries. 2004; C. Lionnet, 2010; ACF-USA, 2004; S. Hauenstein Swan, 2010.

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COUNTRY PROFILE

HUMANITARIAN CONTEXT

Since independence, Chad has suffered from political instability, social unrest and conflicts with neighboring countries. This has left the country with poor infrastructure, an unstable government and a dire humanitarian situation. Even though the country has reaped the benefits of an oil boom since 2003, the mismanagement of funds has led to wide- spread poverty.

In the past decade, Chad has become a safe haven for refugees fleeing from violence in neighboring countries. The United Nations High Commissioner of Refugees (UNHCR) estimates that nearly 340,000 refugees from Sudan and Central African Republic are currently residing in Chad, with 12 refugee camps functioning in the country. This influx of refugees, particularly along the eastern border with Sudan, has created a great need for humanitarian assistance—for example, the rapid population increase has caused commu- nities surrounding the camps to suffer from decreased and contaminated water supplies. In addition to the refugees, the UNHCR estimates that 170,000 Chadians have been dis- placed internally, fleeing the eastern region due to violence and insecurity. Source : Google Maps

The western region of Chad frequently suffers from acute malnutrition rates above 20% during the hunger gap (a period of routine food scarcity between harvests). Insufficient rainfall over the past two years has exacerbated this crisis and now nearly two-thirds of households do not have sufficient amounts of food on a daily basis. A lack of arable land due to desertification, coupled with limited access to water and health- care, has had devastating effects on malnutrition rates in the region.

FURTHER ACTIVITIES ACTION AGAINST HUNGER IN CHAD ACTION AGAINST HUNGER | ACF INTERNATIONAL launched its first program in Chad in 1982 to help re- • Have students research introduce agricultural production into the war-torn country. In 2004, ACF shifted efforts to the eastern the Global Hunger Index: region of Chad to address the influx of Sudanese refugees. Eventually, these programs were expanded to what is it, and what does address the vulnerability of local Chadian populations while maintaining support for the Sudanese refu- it aim to measure? Com- gee populations. In early 2010, ACF launched a nutritional program in western Chad to address increas- pare Chad’s placement on ing malnutrition rates resulting from the lack of rainfall and the effects of increasing desertification. the Index with that of the United States’ ranking, and explain the differences. Western Chad South-Eastern Chad

• Have students review • Emergency response programs to prevent and • Distributions of non-food kits (i.e., plastic covers, the Geography & Climate treat malnutrition in children blankets, water containers, soap) section—along with outside • Strengthening the capacity of 33 local nutrition • Distributions of vegetable seeds sources—and explain how centers • Installation and rehabilitation of water points agricultural production • Carrying out routine nutritional surveys • Rehabilitation and enlargement of water distrib- in Chad is affected by its • Operating mobile nutritional units ution systems environment and varying • Construction of latrines climates. North-Eastern Chad • Hygiene promotion

• Monitoring food distributions in six refugee camps Photos: ACF-CHAD, courtesy of C. Lion- • Evaluations of humanitarian contexts in refugee net, 2010; ACF-USA, 2004; C. Lionnet 2010. camps and address needs as they arise