Attachments
Context
Since 2002, Chad has hosted up to 70,000 refugees from Central African Republic (CAR) who arrived in the country in successive waves until 2008. Chad has ratified the 1951 and 1969 (African) conventions on refugee status. It recognizes prima facie all the CAR refugees and supports their integration and self-reliance, which translates into allocation of land to refugees, freedom of movement, as well as freedom to engage in economic activities.
The seven CAR refugee camps are located in southern and south- western Chad, which are advantaged regions in agro-climatic terms. The local population is ethnically similar to the refugees and the main activity practiced by both refugees and host population is agriculture.
WFP food assistance
Assistance and protection for the refugees are ensured by government entities notably the Commission nationale pour l’accueil et la réinsertion des réfugiés et des rapatriés (CNARR), UNHCR and WFP, as well as national and international NGOs. The European Commission also funds two Linking Relief, Rehabilitation and Development (LRRD) programmes aiming to support the refugees’ transition towards self-reliance and integration.
Since 2003, WFP food assistance has been implemented through six operations, which aimed to meet refugee food needs. Despite objectives gradually shifting towards the promotion of self- reliance from 2005 for the earlier refugees, general food distribution (GFD) remained the main food assistance modality with some nutrition programmes, while food-for-work interventions stayed marginal and mainly benefited the host population.
In most cases, camps received GFD in the form of full ration (2,100 kcal/day) for the first three to five years after their creation. The rations were then reduced to 1,200 kcal/day, or curtailed and replaced by targeted distributions to persons with special needs (PSN) and ad hoc GFD during lean seasons.