What we do

Situation of children in Chad  

Chad is a landlocked Sahelian country in Central Africa of about 19.3 million inhabitants, with a population growth of 3.6%. Spanning 1.28 million km², it is surrounded by Cameroon, Central African Republic, Libya, Niger, Nigeria and Sudan. About 3 in 5 people (57%) are aged under 18. About 3 in 4 people (76%) live in rural areas. 

The country faces recurring multidimensional and complex rapid-onset and protracted humanitarian crises, including food insecurity, sociopolitical tensions, health emergencies and natural disasters exacerbated by climate change, presence of non-state armed groups in the Lake Chad Basin as well as the refugee crisis in Eastern Chad due to the conflict in Sudan (see box). Ranking 189 out of 193 on the Human Development Index, Chad’s poverty rate increased from 42.3% in 2018 to 44.8% in 20221, affecting 7.8 million people, including 5.1 million children.  

Despite progress in accessing basic social services, children in Chad continue to face severe child rights deprivations. Budgetary allocations underscore the government’s focus on security over social sectors: in the 2025 financial act, 26% of the national budget was directed to security and defense, compared to 22.5% for education, health, and social affairs combined. 

Although the under-five mortality rate decreased from 129 in 2015 to 101 per thousand live births in 20232, Chad remains the fourth highest in infant and child mortality globally. The 2024 food and nutrition crisis left more than 1.5 million under-five children stunted, with chronic malnutrition rates exceeding the very high threshold of 30% set by WHO and over half a million children suffering from severe acute malnutrition, surpassing the humanitarian emergency threshold of 2%3.  

Education has seen improvements, with gross enrollment rates over 91% in primary schools and around 31% in lower secondary schools4. However, gender disparities persist with significant gaps between girls' and boys' education rates. Less than one child out of two (48%) completes their primary education. Over 3 million children are out of school. 

Child protection remains a significant challenge, with only a quarter of births of under-five children (25%) registered and high rates of early marriage. Nearly one in five girls (24%) marry before the age of 15, about 60% before the age of 185. Almost one in five girls (19%) has a child before 18. 

Chad is highly vulnerable to climate change, ranking second globally on UNICEF's Children's Climate Risk Index. This results in major challenges such as frequent food security crises, droughts and floods that worsen already precarious living conditions and increase the vulnerability of populations, especially children. In 2024, severe flooding across the country affected more than 1.9 million people and killed 576. Access to basic drinking water and sanitation services is limited, with less than 46% of households having access, and more than 62% practicing open defecation. Social services, including schools and health facilities, have limited access to water and sanitation.  

The Sudanese refugee crisis in Eastern Chad

Following the most recent clashes in North Darfur, about 70,500 new refugees have crossed into two Chadian provinces (Wadi Fira and Ennedi East) between mid-April and the end of May 2025. In total since the beginning of the conflict in Sudan on 15 April 2023 and by June 2025, over 850,000 Sudanese refugees and more than 273,600 Chadian returnees from Sudan have arrived in the four border provinces of Ouaddai, Sila, Wadi Fira and Ennedi Est6. These provinces are amongst the most deprived areas of Chad and already struggling to host an existing population of some 400,000 Sudanese refugees living in camps since the 2003 Darfur war. About 61% of the refugees and 68% of the returnees are children under 18. 

UNICEF’s work in Chad 

1. Country Programme Document 2024-2026 

Every child and adolescent survive and thrive 

Aligned with Chad’s National Health Development Plan 2022–2030, efforts focus on improving child survival by enhancing key health services, prioritizing newborn care, increasing investment in maternal health, supporting community health strategies, promoting behavior change, and addressing adolescent health data gaps through national surveys.  

Every child has access to a nutritious diet 

We support the country’s National Food and Nutrition Policy by integrating health, nutrition, and social protection at the community level, improving child feeding, treating malnutrition, and promoting diverse diets through partnerships and local farming initiatives. 

Every child, including adolescents, lives in a safe and clean environment 

We work with partners to ensure sustainable, climate-resilient water and sanitation services by strengthening systems, promoting innovation, and supporting community-led solutions. The programme emphasizes women’s and adolescents’ roles, equitable access, and renewable energy use, while aligning with national goals to end open defecation and improve school WASH services. 

Every child, including adolescents, learns and acquires life skills 

We support equitable, inclusive education by improving climate-resilient infrastructure, reducing gender disparities, and promoting social cohesion. We advocate with partners for better governance, inclusive and modernized education, and multisectoral support in health, nutrition, and protection, while also enhancing teaching, preschool, and distance learning. 

Every child, including adolescents, is protected from violence and exploitation 

We support the National Child Protection Policy by strengthening child protection and justice systems to prevent violence, exploitation and harmful practices. We promote universal birth registration through digital tools, enhance civil registration services and build capacities of social and justice actors. We support case management, intergenerational dialogue and community-based protection networks. 

Every child has access to inclusive social protection and lives free from poverty 

We support the National Social Protection Strategy by expanding coverage for vulnerable children, strengthening systems like the social registry and transfer programmes, and promoting accountability. In partnership with global institutions, we build government capacities for child-sensitive budgeting, improve expenditure tracking, and encourage citizen participation in decentralized budget planning.

2. Recalibration as part of the Future Focus Initiative 

Building on data evidence and the current funding context, the Country Office engaged in a recalibration exercise in 2025. Four cross-sectoral priorities were identified and agreed upon with the Government, aligned with Chad's national development plan and the UNICEF 2026-2029 Strategic Plan. A total of 46 districts of convergence were identified in the 13 most vulnerable provinces.  

Priority 1: The 1,000 Golden Days, significantly reducing child mortality and malnutrition in Chad, that threaten the survival, development, and learning abilities of young children. These factors also impact the quality of human capital, a key driver of socio-economic development. This priority aligns with Impact 1 of the Strategic Plan.  

Priority 2: Response to the Learning Crisis which aims to enhance access to education and retention of girls and boys in school, especially the most vulnerable, aligning with Impact 2 of the Strategic Plan.  

Priority 3: Resilience to Climate Change that aims to contribute to the strengthening of preparedness and response capacities and mechanisms to climate change consequences at national and local level. This priority is aligned with the Impact 5 of the 2026-2030 Strategic Plan.  

Priority 4: Sustainable emergency preparedness and response is a cross-cutting priority based on the recurring multidimensional and complex rapid-onset and protracted humanitarian crises which compromise and undermine the realization of children’s rights and its related principle to leave no child behind. This cross-cutting priority is aligned with the Impact 1, Impact 2, Impact 3, Impact 4 and Impact 5 of the Strategic Plan.