CHAD

(MissionNewswire) Salesian missionaries have been living and working with poor youth in Chad in central Africa since 1995. They established their first programs in Sarh, the third largest city in the country, which has more than 120,000 residents. Three years later, missionaries began other programs in the capital of N’Djamena, and in 2013, in the city of Doba.

In Sarh, Salesian missionaries operate a kindergarten, a school for older youth, a youth center and a church parish. Salesian work also takes them into more than 116 villages in the surrounding areas. The goal is to provide people with their most basic needs including food, clothing, and medical assistance while encouraging youth to attend the local Salesian school.

Education has proven to be an effective means of breaking the cycle of poverty while giving the most vulnerable youth a sense of personal dignity and self-worth. Salesian primary and secondary schools lay a foundation for future education while Salesian vocational, technical, professional and agricultural schools provide practical skills so youth have an opportunity to become contributing adults in their communities — rebuilding communities and ending the cycle of poverty.

“Education is always our primary focus,” says Father Gus Baek, director of Salesian Missions, the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco. “We know, however, that youth in Chad are dealing with much more than just having access to education. Salesian programs are tailored to meet the needs of the youth in the communities they serve. Homeless and malnourished youth are simply not able to focus effectively on their studies while they struggle to meet their basic needs. Our services provide food and shelter so youth are able to focus on the education provided.”

Chad is one of the poorest countries in the world. According to the World Food Programme, 42 percent of its population lives below the poverty line. Chad is a low-income country with limited income-generating opportunities and restricted access to social services. The Human Development Index ranks it 187 out of 189 countries in 2020.

Most of Chad is covered by desert and this presents a significant challenge for a developing country that depends largely on subsistence farming. The most successful practice is migratory farming, where herds can move and adapt to changing climate conditions, but even this practice is severely limited by resources.

Frequent droughts have also aggravated already challenging conditions. Recent climate changes have decreased rainfalls and consistent overuse has led to soil erosion and land degradation. As a result, farmers lack infrastructure, support and resources needed to grow sufficient food to feed the country properly.

The World Food Programme has noted that there are 3 million vulnerable people affected by chronic food insecurity and climate-related disasters in 2022. In addition, 37.8 percent of children under age 5 suffer from stunting, according to the Global Nutrition Report, with low height for their age caused by chronic malnutrition.

Women in Chad also face significant gender discrimination. They often must work outside the home as well raise a family, tend the farms, gather water and cook. Yet they are culturally limited from access to education or training, and marginalized by society. These women are especially vulnerable to the psychological as well as physical effects of poverty.

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Sources:

ANS Photo (usage permissions and guidelines must be requested from ANS)

ANS – Chad – Salesians in Doba, committed to ensuring children’s nutrition

Salesian Missions – Chad

World Food Programme – Chad

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“The violence in Central African Republic is gut-wrenching in its brutality and viciousness and children have not been spared,” said UNICEF Representative in Central African Republic, Souleymane Diabaté. “On average, at least one child has been maimed or killed in clashes every day in the past six months. The cycle of brutality and retaliation must stop.”

UNICEF has verified that 277 children have been maimed and 74 killed over the past six months. The actual numbers are much higher, including deaths and sickness caused by the total collapse of basic services. Because of the relentless violence and insecurity in some parts of the country, UNICEF is unable to verify all cases of violations against children.

A worsening situation across the country, including the capital, is again forcing increasing numbers of people from their homes. There are now more than half a million internally displaced persons, at least half of whom are children.

Another 347,000 people – two thirds of them children – have fled the country and now live as refugees mostly in Cameroon, but also Chad, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Republic of the Congo.

UNICEF is working closely with partners to protect children from violence, providing safe spaces for learning and psychological support for those most affected. Children separated from their families are being registered for reunification as quickly as possible. Negotiations are ongoing with armed groups who have recruited children to secure their immediate release and reintegrate them within their communities when possible.

UNICEF is also helping provide humanitarian assistance to displaced children and families in need, providing safe water, proper sanitation and other essentials like tarpaulins for shelter, plastic mats and jerry cans.

Lack of funding remains a critical concern. The crisis in the Central African Republic and neighbouring countries is UNICEF’s least funded large-scale regional emergency. Overall needs recently increased to $120 million for 2014, are, half-way through the year, less than 25 per cent met.

“We are committed to staying the course and to doing all we can for the children of the Central African Republic,” said Diabaté. “The international community has to do its share as well.”

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About UNICEF
UNICEF promotes the rights and wellbeing of every child, in everything we do. Together with our partners, we work in 190 countries and territories to translate that commitment into practical action, focusing special effort on reaching the most vulnerable and excluded children, to the benefit of all children, everywhere. For more information about UNICEF and its work visit: www.unicef.org

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Central African Republic has descended into chaos since the mainly Muslim Seleka rebel coalition seized power a year ago. Its abuses on the majority Christian population triggered waves of revenge attacks, leading to thousands of deaths and displacing hundreds of thousands of civilians, including the majority of the country’s Muslims.

The Chadian troops were escorting the last 540 Muslim residents of the northwestern town of Bossangoa to Gore in Chad when militia attacked the convoy at night on April 11 as it passed through Boguila, around 310 miles (500 km) north of the capital Bangui.

The Chadian soldiers fought back, and three wounded were later admitted to MSF facilities in Boguila and Paoua.

“We witnessed the majority of the population fleeing in panic to the bush,” Stefano Argenziano, MSF head of mission in the country, said in a statement on Tuesday, estimating that around 7,000 people were displaced in the clash.

“We are worried that the gun battle may have resulted in more people being injured. For the moment we cannot access the area to verify if this is the case and evacuate the wounded,” Argenziano said.

The United Nations said earlier this month it was trying to urgently evacuate 19,000 Muslims from Bangui and other parts of Central African Republic who are surrounded by anti-balaka Christian militia threatening their lives.

Chadian troops, at the heart of African efforts to stabilise the country, have escorted convoys carrying tens of thousands of Muslims.

N’Djamena began withdrawing its troops from Central African Republic’s African Union peacekeeping mission, known as MISCA, earlier this month, however, following a series of violent incidents including an attack on a market that killed 30 civilians.

MISCA officers confirmed on Tuesday that Chad had competed its withdrawal and the AU mission and soldiers from a French intervention force had replaced them.

“They left with all their kit without waiting to be relieved,” said a MISCA commander whose Congolese troops had replaced the Chadians in the towns of Kabo and Batangafo.

The United Nations Security Council last week authorized the creation of a nearly 12,000-strong U.N. peacekeeping force in the Central African Republic in a bid to end the violence. The U.N. operation will assume authority on Sept. 15 from the 5,600-strong MISCA force.

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by Crispin Dembassa-Kette

PHOTO: Children stand during rain in front of Saint Michel Catholic church in the town of Boda, Central African Republic, April 14, 2014. REUTERS/Goran Tomasevic

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