Context
Chad is ranked 170 out of 177 countries according to the Human Development Index 2008, while the Human Poverty Index placed Chad on position 108 among 108 developing countries [UNDP Human Development Report 2007/2008].
The annual growth rate of Chad's population is 2.4 percent with an estimated life expectancy at birth of 47 years. Under 5 mortality (200 per 1,000 live births) and maternal mortality rates (1,100 per 100,000 live births) are among the highest in the world.
Over 80 percent of a total population of over nine million relies on subsistence farming and livestock raising, living on less than US$ 1 a day. Conversely the national GDP per capita is US$ 1,700. Cotton, cattle, and Arabic gum provide most of Chad's non-oil export earnings.
In 2000, when oil was still sold for around US $20 a barrel, the World Bank and Chad signed an agreement. The strategy was to use the World Bank's money and credibility to persuade Chad to dedicate its earnings from oil to combating its poverty by building schools, roads and hospitals. An independent oversight board was set-up to approve or deny spending projects based on their prospects for reducing poverty. The experiment ended in mid September 2008 when the World Bank pulled out of the agreement. Chad repaid the US $65.7 million it owed to the institution - yet it had never allocated adequate funds for poverty reduction. Today Chad produces 170,000 barrels a day and is expected to earn US $1.4 billion in oil revenues this year.
In 2008 Transparency International ranked Chad 173 out of 181 countries for the level of corruption, with a Corruption Perception Index score of 1.6/10.
Eastern Chad includes from North to South the regions of BET [Borkou, Ennedi, Tibesti], Dar Tama, Ouaddai and Dar Sila. These regions are characterised by chronic insecurity and a level of development that is even under the national average.