Chad: Humanitarian situation of the Lac Province (12 June 2023)

OVERVIEW

The humanitarian situation in Lac Province is characterised by ongoing armed incursions, the effects of climate change and its impact on the population's nutritional status, child malnutrition and poor access to livelihoods and basic social services.

The activities of non-state armed groups (NSAGs) continue to exacerbate the humanitarian crisis in the region, resulting in population displacement: 8,325 households (33,985 people) have left the islands to settle on the mainland since the beginning of the year.

Fouli department, which has the highest number of displaced, was hardest hit by these attacks, followed by Kaya. There are also problems of physical access due to the rising waters of the lake, tolls imposed by individuals on certain roads and the presence of improvised explosive devices (IEDs) in certain places.

From February to the first week of June, 43 major security incidents were reported by security sources, including 24 acts of terrorism and 19 cases of crime and armed conflict. These incidents caused significant material damage, loss of life (58 deaths), injuries (43 people) and abductions (49 people). The departments most affected were Mamdi, Kaya and Fouli. A total of 1 102 protection incidents were recorded between January and June 2022. In the absence of an official report, the current trend is not yet available, but the recurrence of incidents shows that there has been no improvement.

The damage caused by the August rains and the river flooding in September 2022 has affected around 250,000 people, increasing the vulnerability of the population. In Bakatoulorom, a return movement of 1,500 households was reported, including residents, foreign economic migrants and people from the surrounding area. The authorities claimed that these returns were prompted by the installation of a security post in the area.

From 23 to 25 May, the Lake Inter-Cluster carried out a rapid multi-sectoral assessment using the Multisector initial Rapid Assessment (MIRA) format in 16 IDP sites in the departments of Fouli, Mamdi and Kaya. The assessment identified 14 559 newly displaced (2 936 households) in need of emergency assistance.