Social policy, planning, monitoring & evaluation
Monitoring is knowing
Challenges
Ever since Chad became an oil-producing nation in 2013, its economy has become heavily dependent on oil. The country’s per-capita GDP doubled over the next ten years before succumbing to a steep decrease in international oil prices and to growth in Chad’s foreign debt. The combined effects of lost oil revenues and uncertainty pushed the country into a deep recession, with poverty levels predicted by the World Bank to reach 39.8 per cent by 2019. The number of persons living below poverty level should increase from 4.7 million in 2012 to 6.3 million in 2019.
The ECOSIT3 research database reveals 48.93 per cent of children living below the poverty level in 2011. This rate is higher than that estimated for the entire population (46.67 per cent), regardless of the age group of the children:
- 0-15 years: 48.88 per cent
- 0-5 years: 47.38 per cent
- 6-10 years: 50.19 per cent
- 11-17 years: 49.99 per cent
UNICEF’s recent study on the impact of oil price decreases on child poverty estimates that the crisis placed 628,427 children under 18 below the poverty line in 2018.
From 2014 to 2018 social budgets decreased significantly, especially for education and health. The 2019 finance law provides for modest increases in these sectors from the previous year, which will allow social demands and poverty to be better addressed.
Solutions
UNICEF supports in analyzing data on a gender-basis for women and children in order to clarify political decisions related to resource allocation, and encourages the use of this data for impact studies and assessments. UNICEF works with the government through the intermediary of INSEED (Chad’s National Institute for Statistics and Economic and Demographic Studies) for the MICS 6 research, which covers new modules of social security, child development, water quality, etc. The research will conclude in April 2020 and will provide key statistics regarding children for tracking SDGs (sustainable development goals).
Concerning the establishment of a multidimensional poverty index (MPI) in Chad, INSEED and OPHI (the Oxford University Poverty & Human Development Initiative) have formed a partnership supported by UNICEF with the goal of updating the multidimensional child poverty analysis in the country.
UNICEF works through the Ministry of Economy and Development Planning (MEPD) to support coordination and capacity building of social security actors, both at national and decentralized levels, as well as the reinforcement of strategic partnerships looking to improve the geographic coverage of social security in Chad.
To help improve budgetary planning capacity in social sectors, UNICEF works with the Ministry of Finance and Budget (MFB) to strengthen social sector ministries in medium-term expenditure framework and programme budgeting.
UNICEF also contributes to government efforts toward decentralization, in terms of detailing provincial and community development plans covering children’s rights, and in partnership with the United Nations Country Team develops plans for security and development in the Lake Province.
