Chad: Food emergency declared

As reported by VOA on 3 June 2022, the government of Chad declared a food emergency on 2 June 2022 and is urging the international community to send assistance. The announcement came shortly before a meeting took place between the head of the African Union and Russia’s president to discuss grain supplies in the aftermath of the invasion of Ukraine.

World Watch Research analyst Yonas Dembele comments: “The UN has warned for many months that more than a third of the population of Chad (some 5.5 million people) would be needing humanitarian assistance in 2022 (Unicef, Chad appeal 2022). Although the cause of the food crisis may have its roots abroad, the poor security situation contributes greatly to the low level of economic activity in the country. Poverty and the lack of food are factors which encourage people to join militant groups and/or participate in organized criminal activity. The deteriorating situation makes it easy for radical Islamic sentiments to sweep through the region, causing fear to rise in Christian communities.”