Disasters in Chad

Flooding is the most significant recent disaster risk in Chad. Pluvial, river and urban flooding affect N’Djamena near the Chari–Logone confluence, as well as southern and eastern provinces. All 23 provinces were affected in 2024; by 15 October, reported impacts included 1,941,869 people, 576 deaths, 432,203 hectares of farmland and 72,170 livestock. In 2025, flooding was less extensive than in 2022 and 2024 but still caused deaths and local displacement in Mandoul, Moyen-Chari, Salamat and Wadi Fira. Drought and water shortages recur, with an average of 14.5% of the population affected by each drought event between 2002 and 2022. They mainly damage crops, livestock, water access, rural livelihoods and food security. Extreme heat is also a major risk. Storms, heavy rainfall, sand and dust storms and wildfires have medium relevance, while landslides are uncommon and earthquakes, volcanoes, coastal flooding, tsunamis and cyclones are not locally significant risks. Desertification increases drought pressure. Seasonal rainfall, the Chari and Logone rivers, the Lake Chad Basin, urban growth, settlement in water-retention areas and weak drainage increase exposure. Flooding and poor infrastructure can also produce displacement, crop and livestock losses, disease risks and additional pressure on local communities. The state leads disaster management, but responsibilities and services remain fragmented. The Comité National de Prévention et de Gestion des Inondations, created by Arrêté N°0362/PR/PM/2024 on 5 August 2024, coordinates prevention, contingency planning, assistance and the mobilisation of partners and funding. The committee has 17 members and is chaired by the Ministry of Finance, with the ministries responsible for social action and territorial planning as vice chairs. The Mairie de N’Djamena and provincial and sector structures also participate. The Humanitarian Country Team and humanitarian clusters provide support. Chad has a Plan de Prévention et de Gestion des Inondations 2023–2027 and a 2025 flood contingency plan. An anticipatory action framework links a forecast trigger to pre-agreed measures, arranged funding and later learning. The Direction Générale de la Protection Civile provides technical and information support under current planning arrangements. The Agence Nationale de la Météorologie, also known as ANAM or Météo Tchad, issues public weather warnings. Its warning system uses the Système d’alerte précoce, or SAP, meaning an early-warning system that communicates a hazard early enough to support protective action. Chad began issuing CAP warnings in 2024 and had 19 automatic weather stations connected to real-time WIS2.0 data exchange from October 2024. The warning chain and the translation of forecasts into local action remain uneven because of staffing, funding and maintenance constraints. People should follow official warnings and evacuation instructions when they receive them, but no unified nationwide emergency telephone number has been verified. Preparedness work is most developed around flooding in N’Djamena. The PILIER emergency plan has a budget of about US$13 million, or CFAF 8 billion. More than 250 kilometres of drainage were cleaned in 2024; later project reporting described a repaired and cleared 350-kilometre drainage network, 12 mobile high-capacity pumps, trained municipal technicians, pre-positioned maps and materials, and support reaching 9,858 households and more than 60,000 people. Measures also include emergency embankments, bank protection, retention basins and road regrading. Schools, health centres, water and sanitation services and waste management are critical systems during floods. Emergency operations involve the national committee, the ministries responsible for health, social action, security, infrastructure and urban planning, the city administration and humanitarian partners. The Chad Red Cross works through 23 provincial committees and more than 75,000 volunteers. Its support has included prevention, evacuation, first aid, psychosocial support, community health, water and sanitation, essential household items, shelter and cash assistance. During the 2024 response, it supported nearly 400,000 people; the IFRC appeal targeted 389,000 people. Evacuation may be organised from exposed or flooded areas, with people staying in schools, host families or temporary sites. Floodwater and blocked roads can prevent access, and schools may need to be cleared before the school year begins. No nationwide standard evacuation paths, permanent shelter register or legally binding national evacuation order has been verified. Assistance can include food, shelter, household items, water and sanitation, health services, protection, cash, seeds, livestock support and livelihood assistance. Access generally depends on exposure and vulnerability and may be provided through government bodies, the Chad Red Cross, United Nations agencies and non-governmental organisations. Reviewed arrangements describe emergency aid without a user fee, but no universal statutory disaster benefit, nationwide compensation rule or established national disaster-insurance system has been verified. Women and children, people with disabilities, host communities, already displaced people and other highly exposed households require particular attention. Flood-response funding needs have exceeded available financing; the 2024 plan requested US$129 million, but only US$20.4 million, or 15.8%, had been funded by 15 October 2024. Recovery focuses on restoring roads, drainage, schools, health centres and water and sanitation systems, together with food, cash, seeds, livestock and livelihood support. Long-term risk reduction includes resilient urban planning, safer land use, drainage and embankment projects, improved water and flood data, and social protection that can adapt during crises. Private preparedness costs vary widely. People should keep essential documents and supplies accessible, monitor official warnings during the rainy season and identify safe contacts and possible accommodation locally, because nationally standardised evacuation paths and shelters are not available everywhere.