Saving Lives of 1000 Malnourished Children in Chad

In context

The end of the long reign of Muammar Qaddafi, killed on 20 October, threatens stability in the region. The upheavals that preceded and followed his fall have created new and potential problems, including massive displacement of populations.

In a context that has evolved from an emergency situation to relative stability in eastern and southern Chad, ACF has been pursuing its activities to assist malnourished children.

Cholera, the disease of dirty hands, was put in the spotlight recently on Global Handwashing Day which takes place on October 15 of each year. The disease affects 37 of Chad’s 61 districts and claims thousands of lives.

Current challenges to our project

Price of main staples millet and sorghum increased by 4% in N’Djamena in recent months, across the country and coarse grains prices are on the increase due to delayed harvests. Also the return of an estimated 48 000 Chadians from Libya is putting additional pressure on food supply.

In 2011, agricultural production has been affected in several parts of the Sahel by late onset of rains, irregular precipitation, prolonged dry spells and significant pest infestations. The expected average crop production in the coastal countries along the Gulf of Guinea will not be enough to offset the expected decline in production in affected Sahel countries, rising food insecurity in Chad. The lack of water could limit pasture production in the southern part of the country. Due to poor pastoral conditions observed in July, a slow progress of return migration northwards has kept animals south of their usual locations and those restricted migratory movements could create overgrazing problems in the South.

Thank you

Although there are no longer armed clashes taking place inside Chad, the security situation remains volatile. Crime, the proliferation of light weapons and its porous borders have kept the country in a state of uncertainty.

In August, the Dogdoré base (East) was evacuated as a preventive measure, because of incidents and threats to our teams from bandits. ACF considers that this evacuation would not impact on the humanitarian situation, given that the installations are autonomous and the agricultural year has been rather good in this region.

A month later, cholera epidemics around Lake Chad spilled over into Abeche, where the organization has been conducting nutrition programmes. Your support continues to provide and supplement our on-going life saving work in Chad, during this protracted food and nutrition crisis. 

(Information sourced from Reliefweb)