Chad: Quick Alerts - 13 November 2020

HEALTH SITUATION

Polio vaccination campaigns to resume in November. An outbreak of vaccine-derived polio (cVDPV2) was recorded in October 2019. Since then, a total of 83 cases due to low vaccination coverage have been recorded. The wild poliovirus was declared eradicated in Chad in June 2016, the current cases are vaccine-derived poliovirus type 2. 95 per cent of cases are children under five years and 90 per cent have not been vaccinated. A first vaccination response was provided in Mandelia (November 2019) and Mongo (February 2020). Vaccination activities were suspended in March 2020 following the adoption of COVID-19 restrictive measures in Chad, which had an impact on the roll out of humanitarian operations across provinces. Vaccination campaigns are due to resume this week. A total of 91 at-risk districts have been targeted for the response to mOPV2 in 16 provinces (Mayo Kebbi-Est, Mayo Kebbi-Ouest, Salamat, Logone Oriental, Logone Occidental, Mandoul, Tandjile, Moyen Chari, Wadi Fira, Ouaddai, Sila, Kanem, Hadjer Lamis, Bahr El Gazel, Lac, Batha). The response targets 3,490,212 under-five children and is due to start on 12 November 2020 in Hadjer Lamis.

Humanitarian partners prepare to respond to the measles epidemic. A stabilization of the measles epidemic has been observed during this period of low transmission. As of 25 October, 8,601 suspected cases of measles and 39 deaths have been notified in 100 out of 126 districts (during the same period in 2019, the tally was 25,283 suspected cases and 242 deaths). However, a period of higher transmission of the disease is expected. This is prompting the planning of a vaccination campaign in epidemic-prone health districts. Two national campaigns are envisaged, requiring funding of 3 million USD, of which 2 million are available through GAVI funds. The first campaign, from 17 to 23 December 2020, will be undertaken in 11 provinces (Mayo Kebbi-Est, Mayo Kebbi-Ouest, Logone Oriental, Logone Occidental, Mandoul, Tandjilé, Moyen Chari, Salamat, Sila, Chari Baguirmi and N'Djamena); the second campaign, from 12 to 18 January 2021, will be carried out in the remaining 12 provinces (Lac, Hadjer Lamis, Kanem, Bahr El Gazel, Batha, Ouaddai, Wadi Fira, Ennedi Est, Ennedi Ouest, Borkou, Tibesti, Guéra). The campaigns will be coupled with vitamin A supplements and deworming for children. The Ministry of Health and donors have invited health partners and others to provide assistance and logistical support to the measles response. The NGO Première Urgence Internationale (PUI) has committed to providing logistical support in the areas where it operates. Barrier and protective measures against COVID 19 will be taken during the vaccination campaigns by teams in the field (hydroalcoholic gel, protective masks, etc.).

COVID-19
As of 11 November, there have been 1,578 reported cases and 100 deaths in 17 provinces. Between 8 and 11 November, there have been 31 new cases: one in Logone occidental, three in Logone oriental, three in N’Djamena, three in Mayo-Kebbi ouest, nine in Moyen-Chari and 12 in Mayo-Kebbi est. Except for one, all new cases between those dates are contact cases which could indicate the difficulty in applying barrier measures in certain areas. Moyen-Chari and Mayo-Kebbi est are the most affected provinces in the country with respectively 196 and 127 reported cases since the beginning of the pandemic.

POPULATION DISPLACEMENTS

Ennedi-ouest
Additional deportation of 54 people from Libya: On 9 November, 54 people including eight women, two girls and two boys, arrived in the town of Ounianga Kebir, located near the Libyan border. Upon arrival, these individuals were placed in quarantine, in accordance with measures taken by the Chadian authorities to prevent and contain the spread of COVID-19. Such deportations - the majority from north-east Libya - have been reported since mid-April 2020. These people arrive in a state of extreme vulnerability. IOM provides them with food, water and NFIs and helps them go back to their original area after quarantine.

HUMANITARIAN RESPONSE

Response continues for flood-affected people. The record rainfall in 2020 has impacted 20 out of 23 provinces in Chad, mostly the central, eastern and southern provinces. Some 64,670 households (or 388,000 people) have been affected in one way or another by the floods across the country this year. Floods caused the displacement of hundreds of thousands of people as well as the loss of food stocks (especially cereals). In addition, hundreds of thousands of hectares of cultivated land have been destroyed, and thousands of heads of cattle have been killed. 34,872 people (5,812 households) have been affected by the flooding in N’Djaména. Many lost their homes to the floods, and have been hosted by family members and friends. Others, initially about a hundred households, have been sheltered at the Tradex relocation site. Food and NFI assistance was provided by MSF, WFP, ONASA, UNICEF, UNHCR, and Qatar Charity.

Further displacement as the Logone river overflows: Following the rupture of a dyke along the Logone river in N’Djamena on 29 October, up to an estimated 3,000 new households have been affected. A joint mission comprising UN agencies, NGOs, the Governor of N’Djaména and SPONGAH visited the flooded areas on 30 October to rapidly assess the damage. Hundreds of people have been left homeless, with important needs in food, NFI, WASH, and shelter. Some of the affected people settled on an old site built in 2012 in Toukra, others settled on an empty lot in front of the 9th arrondissement municipality. Discussions are ongoing about the possibility of identifying a larger site capable of accommodating the additional flood-affected people in the capital, decongesting Tradex, given the overcrowding at this site. The newly-displaced have also sought shelter there, putting pressure on existing resources. Meetings of the Crisis Committee have taken place on 9 and 13 November to agree next steps of the response and how to supplement initial assistance already provided.