Chad appeals for urgent international aid to tackle humanitarian crisis

Chad has appealed to its international partners for urgent help amid the unfolding humanitarian crisis in the central African country caused by conflicts and climate shocks in an effort to save lives of more than two million people.

Abdelmadjid Abderahim, Chad’s public health minister, said flooding, an influx of over 600,000 refugees from conflict-torn Sudan, increasing numbers of internally displaced persons, and armed conflicts between communities are straining the country’s resources and inflicting suffering on civilians that the government cannot handle alone.

Abderahim described the food insecurity and humanitarian crisis as unprecedented, citing insufficient agricultural production due to climate change, droughts, and infestations by migratory birds and crickets.

The country of 18 million people is among the poorest nations in the world, and food is particularly scarce now between harvests.

With over 42% of the population in Chad living below the poverty line, according to the World Bank, the European Union, Japan, the United States, and international organizations have been contributing to help the country by distributing food, seeds and sharing cash transfers to families most exposed to hunger.

Further aggravating the humanitarian crisis is the brutal war in neighboring Sudan that has resulted in a mass exodus of people across the border to Chad and beyond. Amid hunger, illness, abuse, and soaring food prices, aid groups in Chad are feeling overwhelmed — and are pleading for international support.