Humanity & Inclusion in Chad

Our teams worked in Chad on several occasions between 1982 and 2000, with its primary focus on physical rehabilitation activities. Since October 2014, we have focused on reducing the threat of explosive remnants of war and provide essential assistance to the victims of these weapons.

The presence of these weapons is a major obstacle to the country’s development. Thousands of people are living under the constant threat of landmines and explosive remnants of war, the legacy of four decades of successive wars in Chad.

President Idriss Déby died April 20, 2021, the day after his fifth re-election. While Chad has experienced a deep economic recession since the 2016 presidential election and the 2014 drop in oil prices, the death of the former president plunges the country into a period of uncertainty. Chad has a population of over 16 million people, half of whom live below the poverty line, according to the World Bank. 

Chad has been affected by various humanitarian crises since 2003. These crises are related to major population movements in border areas, including refugees from Sudan in the east, refugees and returnees from the Central African Republic in the south, and more recently Nigerian refugees and internally displaced people in the Lac Province in the west of the country. In 2020, the government conducted Operation Bohoma Anger in an attempt to eradicate destabilizing armed groups in the Lac region. Attacks, kidnappings, murders, robberies, and fires have continued regardless and the security situation is increasingly unstable. 

Areas of Intervention

• Protection and risk reduction
• Armed violence reduction
• Inclusion
• Rehabilitation
• Health and prevention

Humanity & Inclusion's 112-member staff implements emergency response and development projects, and builds on its core activities, including mine action, assistance to people with disabilities, inclusion, physical rehabilitation, and inclusive education. Teams seek innovative and sustainable solutions to better respond to actual needs and to support the socio-economic development of communities in need. For example, in the north of the country, Humanity & Inclusion has launched a large-scale Demining and Economic Development Project (PRODECO) in consortium with Mine Advisory Group, SECADEV and the Swiss Foundation for Mine Action.

In the Lake region, Humanity & Inclusion contributes to the protection and schooling of children and conducts risk education for hosts and displaced persons affected by crisis. Staff also accompanies children with disabilities through psychosocial support.  

The ODYSSEE 2025 project has also enabled Humanity & Inclusion to build on its innovative approach to mine action through the use of drones, electronic tablets and new technologies in order to improve the responsiveness and relevance of its armed violence reduction actions.

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At the Kousseri displacement site on Lake Chad, Humanity & Inclusion ensures that 13-year-old Mahamat’s disability will not stop him from getting an education.

When he was a toddler Mahamat developed an illness that still affects him today—causing weakness in his legs and requiring him to use a crutch for support. The 13-year-old boy lives with his grandmother in a community that is home to more than 7,000 internally displaced people, many of whom have fled violence or climate-related crises.

Last year, Mahamat was enrolled in school for the first time through Humanity & Inclusion’s project focused on the protection and schooling of children in the Lake region. In the 2022-23 school year, more than 7,500 children were enrolled in the project. Among them were 113 children with disabilities. Funded by the European Union, this project is part of HI's ongoing initiative to improve access to education for children impacted by the ongoing humanitarian crisis.

HI provides school supplies to support inclusive education. Once he was enrolled in school, Mahamat received a school bag, slate, and chalk from HI.

"One day, I saw other children coming back from school with backpacks. They showed me the school materials inside. I asked them where they got all this stuff, and they showed me the way to the school,” Mahamat recalls. “They told me that we would go back to school the next day, and the day after that, too. I was very happy!"

HI’s mobile team identified other needs for Mahamat. He receives food support and medical care. A new pair of crutches help him walk the long journey to school more easily, so he can have more energy to concentrate on his learning.

“When I grow up, I would like to pass on my knowledge and teach at the Koranic school, and at the same time raise goats and become a rich merchant to support my family,” Mahamat says. “And for that, I know I need to go to school."

A community effort

At the beginning of each school year HI trains and mobilizes community leaders to be part of an awareness committee. This committee goes door-to-door speaking to families and encouraging them to enroll their children in school.

To promote inclusive education, teachers undergo a three-week training at the beginning of the school year, provided by education officers, psychosocial support protection officers, the HI project manager, and primary education pedagogical inspectors.

This training covers topics such as stress management, psychological first aid, hygiene and sanitation, and inclusive techniques for teaching children with disabilities. Accessibility and inclusion are addressed in a transversal way in all the modules, allowing teachers to take better care of students with disabilities while giving them tools to raise awareness among other children and allow a protective and inclusive educational environment for all.

So far, 126 teachers from 12 schools have completed the training. Mahamat’s teacher is one of them.

"In the classroom, the teacher puts me in the front row so that I can follow the lesson well,” Mahamat explains. “He often asks me questions, so I feel at ease.”

HI in Chad

Humanity & Inclusion has been present in Chad since the 1990s in the sectors of inclusive and emergency education, mine action, victim assistance, peace-building, physical and functional rehabilitation, and the socio-economic inclusion of people with disabilities.

Insecurity in Chad’s Lake Province has prevented thousands of children from attending school. Humanity & Inclusion works to improve their access to education, protection and psychosocial support.

Since 2010, armed conflict in Chad has internally displaced over 400,000 people and prevented nearly 25,000 children from attending school. The unstable situation left the region with insufficient teachers, schools and learning materials. Humanity & Inclusion supports the physical, psychosocial and intellectual protection of children impacted by the crisis by improving access and quality of education. The organization has contributed to the construction of classrooms, child-friendly play areas, and hygienic facilities including accessible toilets for children with disabilities.

Humanity & Inclusion has recruited, financed and trained teachers to better provide inclusive education, psychosocial support and protection of students. The organization also distributes supplies such as backpacks, textbooks and pens to students and provides financial support for other materials needed. Present in 12 zones, this education project targets 12,000 children, including 6,000 girls and 2,400 children who have disabilities or face other challenges to education.

Fatime, 11, and Mai, 14, are students at a new school for displaced children in Chad.

Fatime attends school for the first time

My name is Fatime Zara. I am 11 years old. I’m from the Yiroubou sub-prefecture of Bol and I live with my parents. Before coming to the Ngourtou Koumboua site for displaced persons, I had never been to school.

I am so happy to see an elementary school in Ngourtou Koumboua for the first time. A year ago, we didn't expect to see classrooms, but today, thanks to Humanity & Inclusion’s support, we have classrooms, school kits, text books, teachers, bathrooms, a school cafeteria, and a safe space to play.

The school brings me knowledge and intelligence. My favorite subject is reading. I also play in the child-friendly space and participate in activities like clean latrine contests organized by the hygiene club.

I hope to continue my studies until the end. I don’t want to be married until I am of age, and I want to choose my own husband. I am motivated to go to school and learn the French language because it will allow me to have a job. My dream is to be a humanitarian, because helping people is really important to me.

Mai finds a safe space amid conflict

My name is Mai Djibrillah. I am 14 years old and I am from Yiroubou, in the islands of Bol. I am in the CP2 class and I live with my uncle.

I arrived at the site two years ago following a violent attack in Melea, where I lost my older brother, which pushed us to move and come here. Before coming to the Ngourtou Koumboua site, I went to school in the Melea village. During the move, I was taken away from my school and separated from my friends.

I like being at the school here because I have gotten to know the other children who come from different backgrounds and our teachers show us how to live together peacefully.

I also like participating in the clean-up days our teachers organize every Saturday. My favorite subjects are reading and singing, and I want to be a teacher one day.

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Humanity & Inclusion helped open the only school in Ngourtou Koumboua, a village that hosts more than 7,000 people displaced by violence. More than 820 children have enrolled, including 501 girls. 

Through a project aimed at protecting and educating children in the Lake Region, Humanity & inclusion built six classrooms to finalize school’s construction. Built according to the “temporary learning spaces” model, using local materials and metal structures, the new classrooms are adapted for emergency contexts.

The new elementary school opened its doors on Oct. 25, 2021, finally providing more than 800 displaced children a place to learn. Six newly recruited teachers are leading classes daily.

When the school opened, 161 newly enrolled children received school supply kits containing one bag, four notebooks, one slate, two pencils, two pens, one box of color pencils and one ruler. Additional supplies are being distributed in January 2022.

Parents celebrate the opportunity to finally send their children to school.

 “We are very happy this morning,” one father said at the opening ceremony. “For us and our children who have waited so long in Ngourtou Koumboua, the school year can finally begin. I am so glad to see this school opening!”

HI’s presence in Chad

Humanity & Inclusion has worked in Chad since the 1990s in the sectors of inclusive and emergency education, mine action, victim assistance, peace building, physical rehabilitation and economic integration of people with disabilities. Teams currently run projects in N'Djamena; the Lake, Logone Occidental and Logone Oriental provinces; and the Borkou, Ennedi and Tibesti (BET) regions.

This education project is part of Humanity & Inclusion’s ongoing initiative to improve the physical, psychosocial and cognitive protection of children affected by humanitarian crises by improving their access to quality education. Future plans include establishing child-friendly spaces for psychosocial support, constructing sustainable and accessible restrooms, and training parent-teacher associations, community-based protection networks and educational staff in inclusive education, children's rights and psychological first aid.

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Khadidja is a 27-year-old entrepreneur living in Chad. With a boost from Humanity & Inclusion’s economic inclusion initiative, she opened her own business.

When she was 2, Khadidja fell off of a donkey in her village and was seriously injured. Ever since, her right leg muscles have been weak, requiring her to wear an orthopedic brace for support.

“As they could not treat me there, my family took me to N'Djamena,” she recalls. “The doctors here told me that I had to be treated in France but we couldn't afford it. Later, my family was able to buy a prosthesis.”

When Khadidja’s brace broke, an acquaintance suggested she reach out to Humanity & Inclusion. Since 2018, she’s been participating in Humanity & Inclusion activities in Chad. Teams repaired her brace and she received an income-generating activities grant. The single mother of two was able to launch her own business.

“Thanks to HI’s help, I set up my small business selling cereals. Now I have enough food every day,” Khadidja explains. “I make numerous orders, which helps me to live and pay for my health care and my children's school.”

With money she saved from her work, Khadidja was also able to purchase a sewing machine to start a small sewing workshop for extra income.

Khadidja's newfound autonomy is helping her plan for the future.

"Since my business is doing well, I would like to expand my activities and buy a motorized tricycle to make it easier for me to get around and collect the goods I sell,” she says. “I would also like to build an extra room to better accommodate my children.”

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October 25 marked the first day of school at a new elementary school in Ngourtou Koumboua in Chad’s Lake province. Humanity & Inclusion helped open the doors of the village’s only school, which is now home to more than 7,000 people displaced by violence.

Since 2018, the village has served as a host site for thousands of internally displaced persons who fled violence of armed groups affecting the region since 2014. Until now, the village has been without a school.

Two years in the making

Through the PROSOLAC project, aimed at protecting and educating children in the Lake Region, Humanity & Inclusion built six classrooms to finalize the construction of this school, two years in the making. Built according to the "Temporary learning spaces" model, which favors the use of local materials and metal structures, the new classrooms are adapted for emergency contexts and can accommodate more than 300 students for the 2021-2022 school year. The project is funded by the European Union through 2023.

For parents, who have been unable to send their children to school until now, the opening of this school is particularly important.

"We are very happy this morning," one father shared at the opening ceremony. "For us and our children who have waited so long in Ngourtou Koumboua, the school year can finally begin. I am so glad to see this school opening."

The official opening ceremony was held in the presence of the departmental inspector of the Provincial Delegation of National Education and Civic Promotion of the Lake, the residential chief, the representative of the canton chief of Nguelea and the students’ parents.

School supply kits–containing 1 bag, 4 notebooks, 1 slate, 2 pencils, 2 pens, 1 box of colored pencils and 1 ruler–were distributed to the 161 newly enrolled students.

Humanity & Inclusion in Chad

Humanity & Inclusion has worked in Chad since the 1990s in the sectors of inclusive and emergency education, mine action, victim assistance, peace building, physical rehabilitation and economic integration of people with disabilities. Teams currently run projects in N'Djamena; the Lake, Logone Occidental and Logone Oriental provinces; and the Borkou, Ennedi and Tibesti (BET) regions.

This education project is part of Humanity & Inclusion’s ongoing initiative to improve access to school and quality of schooling for more than 9,000 children in Chad’s Fouli and Kaya departments.

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From clearing explosive weapons to helping entrepreneurs launch their own businesses to assisting people with disabilities and mine victims, Humanity & Inclusion has stepped up its actions in northern Chad since 2017.

Rachel Datché, 33, was traveling to see her sister when she stepped on an anti-personnel mine in Fada. After her right leg was amputated, she received an artificial limb and post-surgical care at the orthopedic and rehabilitation center in Kabalaye in 2020. Rachel (pictured above) is one of the participants in PRODECO, a vast development program coordinated by Humanity & Inclusion in consortium with three other NGOs. The four-year project to help restore the economic sustainability of the local population will wrap at the end of 2021.

“This wide-reaching program includes mine clearance operations, risk prevention, victim assistance, rehabilitation and economic assistance,” explains Jean-Michel Mathiam, who manages Humanity & Inclusion’s actions in northern Chad.

Legacy of war

The Borku and Ennedi regions were ravaged by civil war and conflict with neighboring Libya in the 1980s, leaving land contaminated by anti-personnel and anti-tank mines. Humanity & Inclusion recently completed its mine clearance operations in northern Chad, which helps people living in rural and agricultural areas earn a living by ensuring the roads leading to their villages are clear of mines.

In Faya and Kirdimi, more than 740 acres of land have been decontaminated through weapons clearance operations. More than 1,000 mines were destroyed by 120 deminers coordinated by Humanity & Inclusion and Mine Advisory Group MAG.

Teams also tested a drone mine detection system. The technology will revolutionize mine clearance operations worldwide.

Supporting small businesses

Since Oreike Bandy’s divorce four years ago, the 38-year-old mother has struggled to feed her family by selling bread at a market in Fada. She’s one of more than 1,000 people who have received a financial boost through a social fund to start her own business and become financially independent.

“I joined the village savings and loan organization [AVEC] and put aside some of my earnings each week to invest in the AVEC. This enables me to renew my stock of food products,” Oreike, pictured above, explains.

Ache Guene, 38, lost her husband four years ago and was suddenly faced with the difficult task of raising their five children alone. With help from Humanity & Inclusion, she also set up her own business and lifted her family out of poverty.

Maimouna Abass, a 30-year-old widow and mother of two children, now runs her own market stall in Fada, where she sells biscuits to earn a living.

"My life has changed. I can reinvest my profits in my business,” she says.

PRODECO project

In 2017, Humanity & Inclusion launched a large-scale development program called PRODECO in partnership with three other NGOs: Mine Advisory Group (MAG), the Swiss Foundation for Demining (FSD), and Secours catholique et développement (SECADEV). Humanity & Inclusion recently completed its mine clearance operations in northern Chad. The organization will continue identifying people with disabilities, primarily victims of mines or explosive remnants of war, in villages and communities to participate in the project through 2021.

In March, Humanity & Inclusion finalized its two-year drone experimentation in Northern Chad with its partners Mobility Robotics and FlyingLabs Côte d’Ivoire.

For the first time in the history of humanitarian mine action, drone flights were operated with Infra-Red in a real environment alongside weapons clearance operations. 

Throughout the two-year project, Humanity & Inclusion tested drones to map and inspect hazardous areas. Teams in Chad captured photos and videos remotely to help deminers inspect unreachable locations and identify hazards on the surface and also created high-resolution maps to study signs of contamination such as craters or traces of landmine accidents involving animals or vehicles.

Humanity & Inclusion and its partners achieved a world-first in humanitarian mine action when teams used a thermal sensor flown on a small drone to locate buried anti-personnel and anti-vehicle landmines in desert minefields. 

Teams faced daily challenges including remote locations, road hazards, extreme heat up to 124°F, sandstorms, food and water difficulties, scorpions, and landmine and explosive ordnances.

During those two years: 

• More than 100 drone missions took place in 65 locations 
• Travel to hazardous areas from the base took between 30 minutes and 1.5 days 
• More than 35 polygons and 19 miles of strip minefields were mapped
• More than 2,500 landmines were located with the thermal sensor
• Dozens of nights were spent in the desert under the stars
• Six Chadian deminers were trained to operate small drones

This innovative project was made possible with generous funding from The Belgian Directorate-General Development and the European Union, and with support from people of the Haut Commissariat National de Déminage au Tchad.

Humanity & Inclusion observed the International Day of Education on January 24, by alerting Sahel countries’ governments and international cooperation organizations on the unjust exclusion of girls with disabilities from school.

Worldwide, women with disabilities are three times more likely to be illiterate than men without disabilities. The education of young girls, including girls with disabilities, is an injustice that Humanity & Inclusion is fighting against, particularly in the Sahel region, which includes many low-income countries.

In 2020, Humanity & Inclusion donors and partners helped fund 52 inclusive education projects in 27 countries in West, Central, North and East Africa, the Middle East, and Asia. This work focuses in particular on children with disabilities - the most vulnerable and excluded young learners in the world - in low-income countries, both in development and emergency contexts. Humanity & Inclusion teams work to increase enrollment, participation and the success of children and young adults with disabilities in education.

The reality of girls' education in the Sahel

Few girls with disabilities attend school in the Sahel Region, which stretches through parts of Mauritania, Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger, Nigeria, Chad and Sudan.

In Mali, less than 18% of women with disabilities can read and write. In Niger and Mali, more than half of the girls enrolled in primary school do not follow through to secondary education. In Burkina Faso, only 1% of girls have completed secondary school. For girls with disabilities, they face double the challenge of obtaining an education. 

Prejudices against disability

In the Sahel, children with disabilities also face horrific levels of prejudice and false beliefs. For instance, some families see having a child with a disability as a "tragedy" or a "punishment." Children with disabilities are treated poorly and sometimes even hidden. Some people believe that disability is contagious.

According to some beliefs in the Sahel Region, the bodies of people with disabilities have magical properties. Girls with intellectual disabilities are vulnerable to sexual abuse and violence because some believe that sexual intercourse could bring them wealth or power or even cure AIDS.

The role of boys

A boy is considered to be responsible for the family's future income. Boys are sent to school and have a better chance of getting a paid job. It is seen as unnecessary for girls to attend school, as they are routinely confined to domestic work.

Children with disabilities are very often seen as an additional burden on the family, and girls with disabilities even more so. The costs of educating girls with disabilities are considered too high, in part because of the economic loss involved. Girls with disabilities often contribute to the economic survival of the household through begging or by participating in domestic chores.

Obstacles at school

When they manage to attend school, girls with disabilities face many obstacles. They often drop out of school early as they approach puberty, due to the family’s concern to protect them from sexual violence and early pregnancy. The lack of adapted toilets is also a cause of repeated absences and abandonment.

"I prefer to study but if my parents force me to marry, I will agree to do what they tell me to do." - Fata, blind 11 year-old girl, Mali

In rural areas, the distance between home and school is a major obstacle to schooling for girls with disabilities. For students who walk to school, long distances pose a safety risk. And the cost of transportation is often too expensive for families.

Positive experiences

In Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger, experiments in inclusive education for children with sensory impairments are successful. The conditions for success are based on an assessment of the child's needs and the commitment of teaching staff who are proficient in sign language or Braille.

"The first year was not easy learning Braille. I didn't feel comfortable. But now it's okay. As time went by, I managed to make friends and we learned to understand each other. I would like to go to high school in Senegal and become a lawyer in my country." - Daouda, 16-year-old girl with low vision, Mali

Importance of education

It is estimated that an additional year of study can increase a woman's income by 20%. If all adults in the world had completed secondary education, the world poverty rate would be halved.

Limited access to education leads to low participation in the world of work. In some low- and middle-income countries, the cost of excluding people with disabilities from the workforce is as high as 7% of gross domestic product.

Reducing inequalities between girls and boys in how they access education could boost the economy by between $112 billion and $152 billion each year in low- and middle-income countries.

Image: Oumou, 9, who has an amputation, sits behind her desk. She is a beneficiary of the Humanity & Inclusive Education project in Mali. Copyright: Pascale Jérôme Kantoussan/HI

Humanity & Inclusion has been conducting weapons clearance operations near Faya-Largeau, the capital of Borku province in northern Chad, since November 2018. Gilles Lordet, a communications officer at HI, recently joined our team of weapons clearance experts and observed their typical work day. It all starts at 4:30 AM. Read on!

4:30 AM: Before sunrise, the team drives to a site in Wadagar, about ten miles from Faya-Largeau. The weapons clearance team starts their day early so they can take advantage of the fresh morning air.

5:00 AM: The team arrives in Wadagar, located in the middle of the desert, along a railroad track. On this particular morning, fifteen weapons clearance experts working on the site gather around Pitchou Lusamba, the operations supervisor. "We're going to start with the weapons clearance platform,” Lusamba explains. “The weapons clearance experts will only be brought in if necessary.”

5:30 AM: To assist with clearance, our teams use a SAG200, made especially for Humanity & Inclusion and our operations in Chad. The SAG200 is like a huge combine harvester. Its rotating front arms detonate all explosive devices in its path. A separate truck transports the SAG200 to the site. After unloading and some adjustments are made, it’s ready for action. Charles Coly, a weapons clearance expert trained to use the machine, controls it remotely at a safe distance.

"For safety reasons, I always need to be more than 500 feet from the machine when it is on contaminated land,” Coly explains. “The front arms rotate at nearly 3,000 rpm. They dig 8 inches into the ground and destroy all explosive devices in their path. Normally, the mines are automatically torn to pieces–they don't even have time to explode. But sometimes they do. A few weeks ago, a rocket exploded as the machine passed over it. The machine was unharmed. It’s designed to withstand an explosion."

7:00 AM: Six weapons clearance experts equip themselves with demining aprons, helmets, and metal detectors. They walk along the 650-foot access corridor to the clearance site where they work in teams of two. The first teammate demines and the second watches from a safe distance, ready to help if there is a problem.

7:30 AM: Manual mine clearance work is long and meticulous. The weapons clearance experts work along a 3-foot-wide corridor. They pass the metal detector above the ground and advance in 17-inch steps. A ruler on the ground marks each step forward. "It may not look like it, but it's an exhausting job,” says Pitchou. “It's 40 degrees [Celsius], we're in full sunlight wearing all the equipment. Deminers need regular breaks. They must be fully focused on the job. Their movements need to be precise and they must follow the mine clearance instructions at all times.”

By 8:00 AM, the temperature reaches 104 degrees Fahrenheit. The weapons clearance experts work in 45-minute shifts. At 10:00 AM, they take a break to rehydrate and get a bite to eat. They work like this until 12:00 PM, when the teams return to base. In the meantime, the machine returns to the garage and receives routine checks.

The Faya-Largeau region has been slow to develop largely due to explosive remnants of war. Humanity & Inclusion’s mine clearance teams in Chad work tirelessly to clear the land, restoring the use of railroad tracks and land to the local people. This allows them to grow crops, raise livestock, and most importantly, live in safety.

Humanity & Inclusion in Chad

Since October 2014, HI has been working to reduce the threat of explosive remnants of war and provide essential assistance to the victims of these weapons in Chad. Nearly 300,000 people live under the constant threat of landmines and explosive remnants of war—the legacy of four decades of successive wars in Chad. The presence of these weapons is a major obstacle to the country’s development. Learn more about our work in Chad and how we’re making the land safe for generations to come.