Chad has no single national institution responsible for everyday coexistence. Formal structures include provinces, communes and elected councils, while local practice also involves neighbourhood and village committees, traditional chiefs, religious leaders, women’s and youth groups, civil-society organizations and NGOs. Access to these structures depends on the location, security situation and presence of public services. No uniform neighbourhood contact point or national mediation tariff has been verified. The strongest local conflicts concern land, water, pasture, transhumance routes, crop damage, insecurity, climate pressure and displacement. Provincial conflict-management committees, administrative authorities, traditional chiefs, religious leaders and representatives of farmers and herders may support dialogue, compensation or the shared rehabilitation of water points and ponds. These arrangements can reduce conflict but are usually informal or mediatory and do not automatically replace courts or create an enforceable judgment. Immediate danger should be reported to the police, gendarmerie or other security services. Civil and criminal disputes can proceed through the courts. The 2023 Constitution describes Chad as a secular state governed by the rule of law and recognizes cultural and linguistic diversity, equality and non-discrimination. It generally protects opinion, communication, religion, the press, association, peaceful assembly and movement, subject to the rights of others, public order and public morals. Practical access is uneven, particularly where services are distant or security conditions restrict movement. Gender-based violence, child marriage, female genital mutilation and gender- or ethnic-based violence remain protection concerns, while women, young people and people with disabilities may face additional barriers to participation. Displacement has a major effect on local coexistence. As of 31 October 2025, UNHCR recorded 2,122,401 people of concern in Chad, including 1,462,624 refugees, 9,427 asylum-seekers, 225,689 internally displaced people and 424,661 returnee migrants at risk of statelessness. The eastern provinces of Ouaddaï, Sila, Wadi Fira and Ennedi Est have been especially affected by arrivals from Sudan, while the Lac region also faces armed violence and displacement. The Commission Nationale pour l’Accueil et la Réinsertion des Réfugiés et des Rapatriés (CNARR) and UNHCR support refugee and asylum procedures. A person intending to seek asylum should normally express that intention to the authorities or CNARR within 90 days of entry, unless force majeure prevented this. Documented refugees and asylum-seekers have equal access in law to movement, residence, public assistance, health care, education and training, courts and religious practice. Law 012/PT/2023 protects internally displaced people and prohibits discrimination because of displacement, although registration, justice and services remain difficult in some areas. Refugee and host communities may use joint committees in camps and reception sites, community-based protection committees and refugee leadership committees for dialogue, awareness, peaceful coexistence and local conflict resolution. Local authorities, UNHCR and NGOs may participate. Consultation and feedback systems exist, but access is uneven. UNHCR reported consultations involving 4,633 refugees and asylum-seekers and 500 internally displaced people, while feedback mechanisms reached 77,092 refugees and asylum-seekers and 2,793 internally displaced people; women held about 40% of leadership roles in the reported participation structures. Community engagement can be formal or informal. Formal options include authorized associations, NGOs, unions and faith, sports or cultural groups, as well as participation through communes. Under Ordonnance 023/PR/2018, an association must obtain authorization before starting activities. Its declaration is submitted at the provincial capital in three copies with its statutes and internal rules. The minister responsible for territorial administration decides within a maximum of three months after the receipt is issued. No nationwide fee has been verified. A legally recognized association may collect membership contributions and bring legal proceedings. The cited framework prohibits associations organized on regionalist or community-based lines. Informal engagement through village committees, elders, women’s or youth groups and religious or traditional mediation usually has no fixed national fee or deadline. Public places that support coexistence include markets, schools, health centres, water points, roads, sports grounds, child-friendly spaces, youth spaces called Nadi Al Chabab and connected centres. Child-friendly spaces can offer play, learning, sport, psychosocial support and listening for refugee and host children. Safety, water and sanitation, gender-based violence risks and accessibility can limit participation by girls, women, children and people with disabilities. Chad has no verified nationwide public-space rulebook or uniform permit system for these uses. Digital communication is becoming another way to maintain contact, access education, finance, health information and services. The legal framework includes Laws 013/014 of 2014 on electronic communications, Law 007/PR/2015 on personal data and Law 009/PR/2015 on cybersecurity and cybercrime. The Regulatory Authority for Electronic Communications and Post (ARCEP), the National Agency for Information Systems Security (ANSSI) and ADETIC are relevant institutions, and Tchad Connexion 2030 is a national digital initiative. Airtel Chad and Moov have upgraded services, while connected centres in Djabal, Farchana, Idrimi and Oure Cassoni serve refugees and host communities. Device costs, connectivity, digital skills and network coverage remain unequal, and no current Chad-specific online mediation or platform-moderation service has been verified. Shared housing is primarily a housing matter, but it affects coexistence through host-family arrangements, camps, organized sites, formal land allocation and community-negotiated occupancy. Most arrangements remain temporary or informal; UNHCR reported legally recognized housing or land rights for only 6% of refugees and asylum-seekers in 2025. Chad has no verified national shared-housing or neighbourhood mediation office and no standard national fee or processing time. A local agreement may help resolve a dispute, but serious threats, criminal conduct, rights violations and unresolved civil claims require the appropriate authorities or courts.
Living together in Chad
Everyday coexistence in Chad is shaped by local government, traditional and religious leaders, civil society and informal community practice rather than one national system. Land, water, pasture, displacement, refugee–host relations and access to public services create the strongest pressures. Constitutional rights support equality, diversity, association and peaceful participation, but security, distance and uneven local capacity affect how people use them.
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