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Chad-Origins and Early Development

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Chad Index

Chadian military vehicles on parade, around 1970
Courtesy Michael R. Saks

When Chad became independent in 1960, it had no armed forces under its own flag. Since World War I, however, southern Chad, particularly the Sara ethnic group, had provided a large share of the Africans in the French army. Chadian troops also had contributed significantly to the success of the Free French forces in World War II. In December 1940, two African battalions began the Free French military campaign against Italian forces in Libya from a base in Chad, and at the end of 1941 a force under Colonel Jacques Leclerc participated in a spectacular campaign that seized the entire Fezzan region of southern Libya. Colonel Leclerc's 3,200-man force included 2,700 Africans, the great majority of them southerners from Chad. These troops went on to contribute to the Allied victory in Tunisia. Chadians, in general, were proud of their soldiers' role in the efforts to liberate France and in the international conflict.

The military involvement also provided the country's first taste of relative prosperity. In addition to the wages paid its forces, Chad received economic benefits from three years of use as a major route for Allied supply convoys and flights to North Africa and Egypt. By 1948 about 15,000 men in French Equatorial Africa (Afrique Equatoriale Française--AEF; see Glossary) were receiving military pensions. Many Chadian southerners, finding military life attractive, had remained in the French army, often becoming noncommissioned officers (NCOs); a few had earned commissions as well. The French wars in Indochina (1946-53) and Algeria (1954-62) also drew on Chadians in great numbers, enlarging the veteran population still further. Those men receiving pensions tended to form the economic elite in their villages. As southerners they did not become involved in later insurgent movements that developed in central and northern Chad.

Prior to independence, the French forces had been reorganized to redeploy some of the Chadian troops assigned to other African territories back into Chad. Following independence the Chad's army was created from southern troops that had served with the French army. Initially, the army was limited to 400 men, some Chadian officers and many French commissioned officers and NCOs. Other soldiers were transferred into a larger paramilitary security force, the National Gendarmerie (see Police Services , this ch.). Equipped with light arms and other supplies, the army used facilities inherited from the French units that it had replaced.

Because the French army units in Chad provided security, a large indigenous force was unnecessary. Accordingly, the Chadian army was deliberately restricted in size. By 1966, however, the departure of the French administration from sparsely populated Borkou-Ennedi-Tibesti Prefecture in the north encouraged dissident forces in the central prefectures to rebel. In response the government expanded its armed strength to a 700-man infantry battalion with supporting light artillery and also activated an air unit (see The Air Force , this ch.).

The continued insurgency necessitated further enlargement of the army, to a total of 3,800 men by 1971. The army formed a paratroop company from 350 Chadians trained by Israeli instructors at a base in Zaire. In addition to strengthening the regular army, the government increased mobile security companies of the National Gendarmerie, equipped as light infantry, to a strength of more than 1,600 men. A third force, the National Guard (later known as the National and Nomad Guard), which had at least 3,500 members, provided security for officials, government buildings, and regional government posts.

Except for the small number of nomad guards, the army and other security components continued to be composed primarily of members from southern ethnic groups, especially the Sara. Little effort was made to enlist northerners, who, in spite of their reputation as fierce warriors, were not attracted to the professional army. Consequently, southern troops stationed in Borkou-Ennedi-Tibesti Prefecture were looked upon as an army of occupation. They imposed humiliating restrictions in the northern settlements, and their abusive behavior was a source of bitterness.

The growing unpopularity of the country's first president, François Tombalbaye, impelled him to strengthen further the internal security forces and to employ a unit of Moroccan troops as his personal bodyguard. During the early 1970s, Tombalbaye doubled the size of the National and Nomad Guard and augmented the National Gendarmerie considerably. At the same time, he neglected and downgraded FAT, which the force interpreted as a lack of trust. These actions ultimately contributed to the decision by a small group of officers to carry out a coup in 1975 that resulted in Tombalbaye's death and a new government under Malloum's presidency.

Malloum's military regime insisted on the departure of the French troops. FAT, however, found itself increasingly unable to cope with the insurgency in the north, and, as a consequence, Malloum was obliged to invite the French back in 1978. As part of an effort at conciliation with one of the rebel factions, Habré was brought into the government. Habré rejected, however, the plan to integrate his FAN troops into the army, and his force soon demonstrated its superior resolution and strength by expelling Malloum's army from N'Djamena (see The FROLINAT Rebellion, 1965-79 , this ch.).

Data as of December 1988

Background		Chad, part of France's African holdings until 1960, endured three decades of civil warfare as well as invasions by Libya before a semblance of peace was finally restored in 1990. The government eventually drafted a democratic constitution, and held flawed presidential elections in 1996 and 2001. In 1998, a rebellion broke out in northern Chad, which has sporadically flared up despite several peace agreements between the government and the rebels. In 2005, new rebel groups emerged in western Sudan and made probing attacks into eastern Chad, despite signing peace agreements in December 2006 and October 2007. Power remains in the hands of an ethnic minority. In June 2005, President Idriss DEBY held a referendum successfully removing constitutional term limits and won another controversial election in 2006. Sporadic rebel campaigns continued throughout 2006 and 2007, and the capital experienced a significant rebel threat in early 2008.
Location		Central Africa, south of Libya
Area(sq km)		total: 1.284 million sq km land: 1,259,200 sq km water: 24,800 sq km
Geographic coordinates		15 00 N, 19 00 E
Land boundaries(km)		total: 5,968 km border countries: Cameroon 1,094 km, Central African Republic 1,197 km, Libya 1,055 km, Niger 1,175 km, Nigeria 87 km, Sudan 1,360 km
Coastline(km)		0 km (landlocked)
Climate		tropical in south, desert in north
Elevation extremes(m)		lowest point: Djourab Depression 160 m highest point: Emi Koussi 3,415 m
Natural resources		petroleum, uranium, natron, kaolin, fish (Lake Chad), gold, limestone, sand and gravel, salt
Land use(%)		arable land: 2.8% permanent crops: 0.02% other: 97.18% (2005)
Irrigated land(sq km)		300 sq km (2003)
Total renewable water resources(cu km)		43 cu km (1987)
Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural)		total: 0.23 cu km/yr (17%/0%/83%) per capita: 24 cu m/yr (2000)
Natural hazards		hot, dry, dusty harmattan winds occur in north; periodic droughts; locust plagues
Environment - current issues		inadequate supplies of potable water; improper waste disposal in rural areas contributes to soil and water pollution; desertification
Environment - international agreements		party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping
Geography - note		landlocked; Lake Chad is the most significant water body in the Sahel
Population		10,329,208 (July 2009 est.)
Age structure(%)		0-14 years: 46.7% (male 2,445,841/female 2,381,319) 15-64 years: 50.4% (male 2,386,428/female 2,816,050) 65 years and over: 2.9% (male 126,351/female 173,219) (2009 est.)
Median age(years)		total: 16.5 years male: 15.3 years female: 17.7 years (2009 est.)
Population growth rate(%)		2.069% (2009 est.)
Birth rate(births/1,000 population)		40.86 births/1,000 population (2009 est.)
Death rate(deaths/1,000 population)		16.09 deaths/1,000 population (July 2009 est.)
Net migration rate(migrant(s)/1,000 population)		-4.08 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2009 est.)
Urbanization(%)		urban population: 27% of total population (2008) rate of urbanization: 4.7% annual rate of change (2005-10 est.)
Sex ratio(male(s)/female)		at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.85 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.73 male(s)/female total population: 0.92 male(s)/female (2009 est.)
Infant mortality rate(deaths/1,000 live births)		total: 98.69 deaths/1,000 live births male: 104.72 deaths/1,000 live births female: 92.42 deaths/1,000 live births (2009 est.)
Life expectancy at birth(years)		total population: 47.7 years male: 46.67 years female: 48.77 years (2009 est.)
Total fertility rate(children born/woman)		5.31 children born/woman (2009 est.)
Nationality		noun: Chadian(s) adjective: Chadian
Ethnic groups(%)		Sara 27.7%, Arab 12.3%, Mayo-Kebbi 11.5%, Kanem-Bornou 9%, Ouaddai 8.7%, Hadjarai 6.7%, Tandjile 6.5%, Gorane 6.3%, Fitri-Batha 4.7%, other 6.4%, unknown 0.3% (1993 census)
Religions(%)		Muslim 53.1%, Catholic 20.1%, Protestant 14.2%, animist 7.3%, other 0.5%, unknown 1.7%, atheist 3.1% (1993 census)
Languages(%)		French (official), Arabic (official), Sara (in south), more than 120 different languages and dialects
Country name		conventional long form: Republic of Chad conventional short form: Chad local long form: Republique du Tchad/Jumhuriyat Tshad local short form: Tchad/Tshad
Government type		republic
Capital		name: N'Djamena geographic coordinates: 12 06 N, 15 02 E time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Administrative divisions		18 regions (regions, singular - region); Batha, Borkou-Ennedi-Tibesti, Chari-Baguirmi, Guera, Hadjer-Lamis, Kanem, Lac, Logone Occidental, Logone Oriental, Mandoul, Mayo-Kebbi Est, Mayo-Kebbi Ouest, Moyen-Chari, Ouaddai, Salamat, Tandjile, Ville de N'Djamena, Wadi Fira
Constitution		passed by referendum 31 March 1996; a June 2005 referendum removed constitutional term limits
Legal system		based on French civil law system and Chadian customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage		18 years of age; universal
Executive branch		chief of state: President Lt. Gen. Idriss DEBY Itno (since 4 December 1990) head of government: Prime Minister Youssof Saleh ABBAS (since 16 April 2008) cabinet: Council of State, members appointed by the president on the recommendation of the prime minister elections: president elected by popular vote to serve five-year term; if no candidate receives at least 50% of the total vote, the two candidates receiving the most votes must stand for a second round of voting; last held 3 May 2006 (next to be held by May 2011); prime minister appointed by the president election results: Lt. Gen. Idriss DEBY Itno reelected president; percent of vote - Lt. Gen. Idriss DEBY 64.7%, Delwa Kassire KOUMAKOYE 15.1%, Albert Pahimi PADACKE 7.8%, Mahamat ABDOULAYE 7.1%, Brahim KOULAMALLAH 5.3%; note - a June 2005 national referendum altered the constitution removing presidential term limits and permitting Lt. Gen. Idriss DEBY Itno to run for reelection
Legislative branch		unicameral National Assembly (155 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms); note - the 1996 constitution called for a Senate that has never been formed elections: National Assembly - last held 21 April 2002 (next to be held by 2009); note - legislative elections, originally scheduled for 2006, were first delayed by National Assembly action and subsequently by an accord, signed in August 2007, between government and opposition parties election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - MPS 110, RDP 12, FAR 9, RNDP 5, UNDR 5, URD 3, other 11
Judicial branch		Supreme Court; Court of Appeal; Criminal Courts; Magistrate Courts
Political pressure groups and leaders		rebel groups
International organization participation		ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, BDEAC, CEMAC, FAO, FZ, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM, OIC, OIF, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Flag description		three equal vertical bands of blue (hoist side), yellow, and red note: similar to the flag of Romania; also similar to the flags of Andorra and Moldova, both of which have a national coat of arms centered in the yellow band; design was based on the flag of France
Economy - overview		Chad's primarily agricultural economy will continue to be boosted by major foreign direct investment projects in the oil sector that began in 2000. At least 80% of Chad's population relies on subsistence farming and livestock raising for its livelihood. Chad's economy has long been handicapped by its landlocked position, high energy costs, and a history of instability. Chad relies on foreign assistance and foreign capital for most public and private sector investment projects. A consortium led by two US companies has been investing $3.7 billion to develop oil reserves - estimated at 1 billion barrels - in southern Chad. Chinese companies are also expanding exploration efforts and plan to build a refinery. The nation's total oil reserves are estimated at 1.5 billion barrels. Oil production came on stream in late 2003. Chad began to export oil in 2004. Cotton, cattle, and gum arabic provide the bulk of Chad's non-oil export earnings.
GDP (purchasing power parity)		$15.82 billion (2008 est.) $15.85 billion (2007 est.) $15.82 billion (2006 est.) note: data are in 2008 US dollars
GDP (official exchange rate)		$8.4 billion (2008 est.)
GDP - real growth rate(%)		-0.2% (2008 est.) 0.2% (2007 est.) 0.2% (2006 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP)		$1,600 (2008 est.) $1,600 (2007 est.) $1,600 (2006 est.) note: data are in 2008 US dollars
GDP - composition by sector(%)		agriculture: 20.5% industry: 48% services: 31.5% (2008 est.)
Labor force		4.293 million (2007)
Labor force - by occupation(%)		agriculture: 80% (subsistence farming, herding, and fishing) industry and services: 20% (2006 est.)
Unemployment rate(%)		NA%
Population below poverty line(%)		80% (2001 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share(%)		lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%
Investment (gross fixed)(% of GDP)		13.7% of GDP (2008 est.)
Budget		revenues: $2.324 billion expenditures: $1.91 billion (2008 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)(%)		10.3% (2008 est.) 4% (2007 est.)
Stock of money		$NA (31 December 2008) $874.5 million (31 December 2007)
Stock of quasi money		$NA (31 December 2008) $55.23 million (31 December 2007)
Stock of domestic credit		$NA (31 December 2008) $82.81 million (31 December 2007)
Market value of publicly traded shares		$NA
Economic aid - recipient		ODA, $379.8 million (2005)
Agriculture - products		cotton, sorghum, millet, peanuts, rice, potatoes, manioc (tapioca); cattle, sheep, goats, camels
Industries		oil, cotton textiles, meatpacking, brewing, natron (sodium carbonate), soap, cigarettes, construction materials
Industrial production growth rate(%)		2% (2008 est.)
Current account balance		-$1.019 billion (2008 est.) -$737.8 million (2007 est.)
Exports		$4.342 billion (2008 est.) $3.674 billion (2007 est.)
Exports - commodities(%)		oil, cattle, cotton, gum arabic
Exports - partners(%)		US 92.8%, Japan 2.2%, France 1.5% (2008)
Imports		$1.927 billion (2008 est.) $1.541 billion (2007 est.)
Imports - commodities(%)		machinery and transportation equipment, industrial goods, foodstuffs, textiles
Imports - partners(%)		France 17.5%, Cameroon 14.8%, China 9.8%, Ukraine 9.5%, US 7.7%, Germany 5.6%, Saudi Arabia 4.7%, Netherlands 4% (2008)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold		$1.347 billion (31 December 2008 est.) $964.4 million (31 December 2007 est.)
Debt - external		$1.6 billion (2005 est.)
Stock of direct foreign investment - at home		$4.5 billion (2006 est.)
Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad		$NA
Exchange rates		Cooperation Financiere en Afrique Centrale francs (XAF) per US dollar - 447.81 (2008 est.), 480.1 (2007), 522.59 (2006), 527.47 (2005), 528.29 (2004) note: since 1 January 1999, the Central African CFA franc (XAF) has been pegged to the euro at a rate of 655.957 CFA francs per euro; Central African CFA franc (XAF) coins and banknotes are not accepted in countries using West African CFA francs (XOF), and vice versa, even though the two currencies trade at par
Currency (code)		Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XAF); note - responsible authority is the Bank of the Central African States
Telephones - main lines in use		13,000 (2008)
Telephones - mobile cellular		1.809 million (2008)
Telephone system		general assessment: primitive system with high costs and low telephone density; fixed-line connections for only about 1 per 1000 persons coupled with mobile-cellular subscribership base of less than 20 per 100 persons domestic: fair system of radiotelephone communication stations international: country code - 235; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) (2008)
Internet country code		.td
Internet users		130,000 (2008)
Airports		54 (2009)
Pipelines(km)		oil 250 km (2008)
Roadways(km)		total: 33,400 km paved: 267 km unpaved: 33,133 km (2002)
Military branches		Armed Forces: Chadian National Army (Armee Nationale du Tchad, ANT), Chadian Air Force (Force Aerienne Tchadienne, FAT), Gendarmerie (2008)
Military service age and obligation(years of age)		20 years of age for conscripts, with 3-year service obligation; 18 years of age for volunteers; no minimum age restriction for volunteers with consent from a guardian; women are subject to 1 year of compulsory military or civic service at age of 21 (2004)
Manpower available for military service		males age 16-49: 1,906,545 females age 16-49: 2,258,758 (2008 est.)
Manpower fit for military service		males age 16-49: 1,103,006 females age 16-49: 1,315,620 (2009 est.)
Manpower reaching militarily significant age annually		male: 121,080 female: 121,585 (2009 est.)
Military expenditures(% of GDP)		4.2% of GDP (2006)
Disputes - international		since 2003, Janjawid armed militia and the Sudanese military have driven hundreds of thousands of Darfur residents into Chad; Chad remains an important mediator in the Sudanese civil conflict, reducing tensions with Sudan arising from cross-border banditry; Chadian Aozou rebels reside in southern Libya; only Nigeria and Cameroon have heeded the Lake Chad Commission's admonition to ratify the delimitation treaty, which also includes the Chad-Niger and Niger-Nigeria boundaries
Refugees and internally displaced persons		refugees (country of origin): 234,000 (Sudan); 54,200 (Central African Republic) IDPs: 178,918 (2007)
Trafficking in persons		current situation: Chad is a source, transit, and destination country for children trafficked for the purposes of forced labor and commercial sexual exploitation; the majority of children are trafficked within Chad for involuntary domestic servitude, forced cattle herding, forced begging, forced labor in petty commerce or the fishing industry, or for commercial sexual exploitation; to a lesser extent, Chadian children are also trafficked to Cameroon, the Central African Republic, and Nigeria for cattle herding; children may also be trafficked from Cameroon and the Central African Republic to Chad's oil producing regions for sexual exploitation tier rating: Tier 2 Watch List - Chad is on the Tier 2 Watch List for its failure to provide evidence of increasing efforts to combat human trafficking in 2007; Chad was destabilized during 2007 by civil conflict leading to a declared state of emergency in February 2008, and a steady influx of refugees fleeing Sudan and the Central African Republic; the government demonstrated insufficient overall efforts to combat trafficking; Chad has not ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol (2008)
Electricity - production(kWh)		100 million kWh (2007 est.)
Electricity - production by source(%)		fossil fuel: 100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001)
Electricity - consumption(kWh)		93 million kWh (2007 est.)
Electricity - exports(kWh)		0 kWh (2008 est.)
Electricity - imports(kWh)		0 kWh (2008 est.)
Oil - production(bbl/day)		127,000 bbl/day (2008 est.)
Oil - consumption(bbl/day)		1,000 bbl/day (2008 est.)
Oil - exports(bbl/day)		157,900 bbl/day (2007 est.)
Oil - imports(bbl/day)		1,571 bbl/day (2007 est.)
Oil - proved reserves(bbl)		1.5 billion bbl (1 January 2009 est.)
Natural gas - production(cu m)		0 cu m (2008 est.)
Natural gas - consumption(cu m)		0 cu m (2008 est.)
Natural gas - exports(cu m)		0 cu m (2008)
Natural gas - proved reserves(cu m)		0 cu m (1 January 2009 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate(%)		3.5% (2007 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS		200,000 (2007 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths		14,000 (2007 est.)
Major infectious diseases		degree of risk: very high food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever vectorborne disease: malaria water contact disease: schistosomiasis respiratory disease: meningococcal meningitis animal contact disease: rabies (2009)
Literacy(%)		definition: age 15 and over can read and write French or Arabic total population: 25.7% male: 40.8% female: 12.8% (2000 est.)
School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education)(years)		total: 6 years male: 7 years female: 4 years (2005)
Education expenditures(% of GDP)		1.9% of GDP (2005)