Chad

Cluster Munition Ban Policy

Last updated: 09 July 2018

Summary: State Party Chad ratified the convention on 26 March 2013. It has expressed its desire to enact national implementing legislation for the convention. Chad has participated in almost every meeting of the convention and voted in favor of a key United Nations (UN) resolution on the convention in December 2017. Chad reports that it has never produced and does not stockpile cluster munitions. In the past, armed forces from other states used cluster munitions in Chad.

Policy

The Republic of Chad signed the Convention on Cluster Munitions on 3 December 2008, ratified on 26 March 2013, and the convention entered into force for the country on 1 September 2013.

Chad has reported its 2013 ratification legislation under national implementation measures for the convention.[1] In the past, Chadian officials expressed interest in preparing specific national legislation to enforce the convention, but those efforts never progressed.[2]

Chad provided its initial Article 7 transparency measures report for the Convention on Cluster Munitions on 24 May 2014 and has submitted two annual updated reports, most recently on 6 June 2018.[3]

Chad actively participated in the Oslo Process that created the Convention on Cluster Munitions and supported a comprehensive ban on the weapon.[4]

Chad has attended most of the convention’s Meetings of States Parties, most recently the Seventh Meeting of States Parties in September 2017, as well as the convention’s First Review Conference in September 2015 and intersessional meetings in Geneva in 2011–2014. Chad did not attend the Meetings of States Parties in 2013 and 2016. Chad has attended regional workshops on cluster munitions, most recently in Lomé, Togo in May 2013.

In December 2017, Chad voted in favor of a UN General Assembly (UNGA) resolution promoting implementation of the Convention on Cluster Munitions.[5]

Chad has also voted in favor of UNGA resolutions expressing outrage at the use of cluster munitions in Syria, most recently in December 2017.[6]

Chad expressed concern at the use of cluster munitions in South Sudan, Sudan, and Ukraine in 2014 and 2015 in its capacity as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council.[7] It voted in favor of a June 2015 UN Security Council (UNSC) resolution expressing concern at evidence of cluster munition use by the government of Sudan.[8] Chad also voted in favor of a May 2014 UNSC resolution expressing concern at the use of cluster munitions in South Sudan.[9]

Chad is a State Party to the Mine Ban Treaty. It is not party to the Convention on Conventional Weapons.

Use, production, transfer, and stockpiling

Chad has reported that it never produced cluster munitions and does not possess any stocks, including for research and training purposes.[10]

Chad is not known to have used or transferred cluster munitions. However, French aircraft dropped cluster munitions on a Libyan airfield inside Chad at Wadi Doum during the 1986–1987 conflict, while the Libyan air force also used RBK-series cluster bombs in Chad containing AO-1SCh and PTAB-2.5 submunitions.

[1] Law 005/PR/2013, dated 18 March 2013. Convention on Cluster Munitions Article 7 Report, Form A, 5 March 2016.

[2] In 2013, government officials indicated that Chad was considering enacting legislation to enforce the convention’s provisions. Cluster Munition Coalition (CMC) meeting with Gen. Abdel Aziz Izzo, Director, National Demining Center (Centre National de Déminage, CND), and Moussa Ali Soultani, Strategic Plan and Operations Advisor, CND, in Geneva, 16 April 2013. The ICRC provides assistance to Chad with respect to national implementation measures. Statement of the ICRC, Lomé Regional Seminar on the Universalization of the Convention on Cluster Munitions, Lomé, Togo, 23 May 2013. Notes by Action on Armed Violence (AOAV).

[3] The annual updated report covers calendar year 2017, the report provided in March 2016 covers calendar year 2015, and the initial report covers calendar year 2013. Convention on Cluster Munitions Article 7 Report, 6 June 2018; Convention on Cluster Munitions Article 7 Report, 24 May 2014; and Convention on Cluster Munitions Article 7 Report, 5 March 2016.

[4] For details on Chad’s cluster munition policy and practice up to early 2009, see Human Rights Watch and Landmine Action, Banning Cluster Munitions: Government Policy and Practice (Ottawa: Mines Action Canada, May 2009), pp. 55–56.

[5] “Implementation of the Convention on Cluster Munitions,” UNGA Resolution 72/54, 4 December 2017. It voted in favor of previous UNGA resolutions promoting the convention in 2015 and 2016.

[6] “Situation of human rights in the Syrian Arab Republic,” UNGA Resolution 72/191, 19 December 2017.

[7] During a 2014 UN Security Council debate, Chad expressed concern that “the Ukrainian army and separatist forces are using cluster bombs in their confrontations in eastern Ukraine…Chad emphatically condemns the use of those weapons of mass destruction in violation of international treaties and calls for an immediate cessation of hostilities.” Statement of Chad, UN Security Council, 7287th meeting, 25 October 2014.

[8] The resolution’s preamble, the Security Council “expressing concern at evidence, collected by AU-UN Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID), of two cluster bombs near Kirigiyati, North Darfur, taking note that UNAMID disposed of them safely, and reiterating the Secretary-General’s call on the Government of Sudan to immediately investigate the use of cluster munitions.” UN Security Council Resolution 2228 (2015), Renewing Mandate of Darfur Mission until 30 June 2016, 29 June 2015.

[9] UN Security Council, “Security Council, Adopting Resolution 2155 (2014), Extends Mandate of Mission In South Sudan, Bolstering Its Strength to Quell Surging Violence, SC11414,” 27 May 2014.

[10] Chad entered “néant” or “nothing” in the report sections on production, transfer, and stockpiling of cluster munitions. Convention on Cluster Munitions Article 7 Report, Forms B, C, and D, 24 May 2014.

Mine Ban Policy

Last updated: 19 October 2017

Policy

The Republic of Chad signed the Mine Ban Treaty on 6 July 1998 and ratified it on 6 May 1999, becoming a State Party on 1 November 1999. National implementation legislation was promulgated on 26 August 2006.[1]

Chad submitted an Article 7 transparency report for calendar year 2016 on 3 March 2017, and has submitted reports every year since 2012.

In November–December 2009, Chad participated in the Mine Ban Treaty Second Review Conference in Cartagena, Colombia, where it gave an update on the status of its mine clearance deadline extension.[2] Chad also attended the Third Review Conference in June 2014 in Maputo, Mozambique.

Chad has consistently attended annual Meetings of States Parties, and participated in Santiago in November–December 2016.

Chad is not party to the Convention on Conventional Weapons.

Production, transfer, stockpiling, and use

Chad is not known to have produced or exported antipersonnel mines. It completed destruction of its stockpile of 4,490 antipersonnel mines in January 2003. It destroyed 1,407 newly discovered stockpiled mines from 2003 to 2005.[3] Chad reported destroying another 11 stockpiled antipersonnel mines in 2007, but did not report details of the locations or sources of the mines.[4]

In all its Article 7 reports, Chad has reported that it does not retain any antipersonnel mines for training purposes.

In June 2009, authorities in Chad reported new use of antivehicle mines by unknown armed groups near its borders with Sudan and the Central African Republic, as well as the seizure of 190 antivehicle mines after a clash with an unidentified armed group.[5]

Several antivehicle mine attacks were reported in Chad in August 2016[6] and August 2017.[7]

It was reported in 2008 that smugglers had lifted and sold antipersonnel mines found in mined areas in Chad bordering Niger.[8]

[1] Mine Ban Treaty Article 7 Report, Forms A and J, 1 April 2007. For the text of Law No.28 PR/2006, see the ICRC website.

[2] See, Landmine Monitor Report 2009, pp. 281–282.

[3] Mine Ban Treaty Article 7 Report, Form G, 1 September 2006; and Landmine Monitor Report 2006, p. 274.

[4] Mine Ban Treaty Article 7 Report, Form G, 1 April 2008.

[5] Email from Saleh Hissein Hassan, National Mine Action Centre (Centre national de déminage du Tchad, CND), 7 May 2010; Ministry of Foreign Affairs, “Le Coordinateur Militaire du MRE, le GL Idriss Dokony Adiker a présenté aux Ambassadeurs et Représentants des Organisations Internationales accrédités à N’djamena, un lot de Matériels de Guerre saisi sur les mercenaries à la solde Soudan” (“The Military Coordinator of MRE, GL Idriss Dokony Adiker presented to Ambassadors and representatives of International Organizations a batch of war materials seized from mercenaries under the pay of Sudan”), 20 June 2009.

[6] “Boko Haram landmine kills four Chadian soldiers,” Reuters, 27August 2016.

[7] “Tchad: un véhicule d’orpailleurs saute sur une mine près de Zouar dans le Tibesti, 8 morts et 11 blessés,” TchadConvergence, 20 August 2017.

[8] See, Landmine Monitor Report 2009, pp. 588–589.

Mine Action

Last updated: 05 November 2018

Treaty status
Mine Ban Treaty	State Party Mine Ban Treaty Article 5 deadline: 1 January 2020 Not on track to meet deadline
Convention on Cluster Munitions	State Party Article 4 deadline: 1 September 2023 Unclear whether on track to meet deadline
Mine action management
National mine action management actors	National High Commission for Demining (Haut Commissariat National de Déminage, HCND) The National Mine Action Center (Centre National de Déminage, CND)
Mine action strategic plan	National mine action plan for 2014–2019
Mine action standards	National Mine Action Standards, revised in 2017
Operators	National: CND International: Humanity and Inclusion (HI, formerly Handicap International) Mines Advisory Group (MAG) Swiss Foundation for Demining (FSD)—capacity-building to HCND
Extent of contamination as of end 2017
Landmines	121.96km² of suspected and confirmed contamination (7 CHAs and 421 SHAs)
Cluster munition remnants	Unknown, but low
Other ERW contamination	Heavy contamination
Land release in 2017
Landmines	None
Cluster munition remnants	None
Other ERW	Not reported
Progress
Landmines	Funding for a new capacity-building and land release project was received in late 2017. The priorities for 2018 were the Borkou, Ennedi, and Tibesti regions
Cluster munition remnants	Large portions of the northern regions, which are heavily contaminated by mines and ERW, are still to be surveyed, and it is possible that there is cluster munition contamination

Notes: CHA = confirmed hazardous area; SHA = suspected hazardous area; ERW = explosive remnants of war.

Mine Contamination

As of December 2017, the Republic of Chad reported it had identified seven CHAs and 421 SHAs, covering a combined total of 122km².[1] These figures should be approached with caution, however, as we can see from the table below, the size and extent of mined areas varies widely; from Salamat with one CHA and seven SHAs said to total only 592m²all the way up to 185 SHAs in Tibesti totaling 75km². In December 2015, Chad reported it had identified a total of 123 mined areas, albeit from a partial national survey.[2] It expected more contaminated areas to be identified in four regions: Borkou, Ennedi, Moyen Chari, and Tibesti. In May 2014, Chad reported 113 areas confirmed to contain mines with a total size of 103.5km².[3]

Chad also has a significant problem with ERW; in 2014, it identified 221 ERW-contaminated areas covering 2.5km².[4]

Chad’s contamination is the result of the 1973 Libyan invasion and 30 years of internal conflict. Chad’s mine action plan for 2014–2019 indicated that, based on a national technical survey conducted in 2010–2012 and information available as of May 2014, it faced a total of 787 hazardous areas covering 1,236km². This comprised 123 mined areas across seven regions (covering 104km²) and 664 ERW-contaminated areas across nine regions (covering 1,132km²). Chad reported that it had already addressed 10 mined areas and 443 ERW-contaminated areas.[5]

As of the end of 2017, three of Chad’s 23 regions contained confirmed mined areas, while a further seven had SHAs, as set out in table below. Borkou, Ennedi, and Tibesti are located in northern Chad at the border with Libya; Sila is located at the border with Sudan; and Moyen-Chari is in southern Chad at the border with the Central African Republic.

Mine contamination by region (at end 2017)[6]

Region	CHA	SHA	Area (m²)
Borkou	0	112	26,961,249
Chari-Baguirmi	0	3	8,699
Ennedi	0	42	16,524,754
Moyen-Chari	0	19	3,273,243
Ouaddai	1	19	0
Salamat	1	7	592
Sila	5	12	6,004
Tibesti	0	185	75,184,525
Wadi Fira	0	18	662
Lac	0	4	798
Total	7	421	121,960,526

Mines and ERW are said to obstruct safe access to housing, roads, pastures, water points, and mining areas, especially in northern Chad. Contamination is an ongoing threat to local populations and its negative impact on the socio-economic development of Borkou, Ennedi, and Tibesti, which are among its poorest regions, is particularly severe.[7] Mined roads obstruct key transport routes, and diversions opened through potentially contaminated areas present risks to local populations seeking to access basic state services, such as medical coverage and higher education and training facilities, provided mainly in regional capitals.[8] In regions to the south, east, and west, the impact of mines is thought to be relatively low, with the primary threat coming from ERW: both unexploded ordnance (UXO) and abandoned explosive ordnance (AXO).[9]

Several antivehicle mine attacks were reported in Chad in August 2016[10] and August 2017.[11] In April 2018, soldiers were killed and wounded during a series of operations in the Lake Chad region against Boko Haram forces who used landmines and other forms of attack.[12] In 2017, Chad sent risk education teams to inform the affected population in the Lake Chad region about the dangers of improvised devices and other ERW.[13] (See Chad’s casualty and mine ban profiles for further details.)

Cluster Munition Contamination

The extent of cluster munition contamination remaining in Chad is unknown, but is not believed to be heavy. Following the end of armed conflict with Libya in 1987, unexploded submunitions and cluster munition containers were found in the three northern provinces of Borkou, Ennedi, and Tibesti; in the Biltine department in Wadi Fira region in the northeast; and east of the capital, N’Djamena.[14] In 2011, MAG found unexploded Soviet antitank PTAB-1.5 submunitions during survey in an area close to Faya Largeau.[15]

The most recent discovery of cluster munition remnants was in 2015, when MAG identified and destroyed a limited number of cluster munition remnants, including two empty RBK-250-275 cluster bomb containers in the Tibesti region and an AO-1SCh submunition in the Borkou region.[16] In January 2015, four children (three girls and one boy) were reportedly injured after handling a submunition in Faya Largeau.[17]

In May 2017, both MAG and HI reported that they had not seen any evidence of significant cluster munition contamination remaining in Chad. However, MAG emphasized that the majority of the Tibesti region, thought to be one of the most heavily contaminated regions with mines and ERW, had still to be surveyed, and there were few local informants who might know of contamination. It also noted the possibility that cluster munition remnants might be found around former Libyan military bases.[18]

In 2012, Chad stated that while the precise extent of cluster munition contamination was not known, it was certain cluster munitions had been used in the Fada region and highly likely they had been used in other parts of the north. Chad said that the Tibesti region was being surveyed to determine the extent of the contamination.[19] In 2014, Chad reported that, after Libyan troops withdrew in 1987, members of the French Sixth Engineers Regiment discovered and subsequently destroyed cluster munition remnants around Libyan positions, prior to the building of the national mine action center. It reiterated its suspicion of additional contamination in the Tibesti region.[20]

Program Management

The national mine action program is managed by what is effectively a national mine action center, the National High Commission for Demining (Haut Commissariat National de Déminage, HCND).[21] The National Demining Center (Centre National de Déminage, CND), which earlier conducted clearance operations, appears to have been dissolved. In July 2017, a new governmental decree restructured the HCND, reducing the number of personnel by more than half from 744 to 329.[22]

In September 2017, the European Union (EU) agreed to support a new four-year mine action project (PRODECO) in Chad.[23] As part of this project, HI is focusing on survey and clearance in the Borkou and Ennedi regions while MAG is working in the Tibesti and Lake Chad regions.[24]The targets for the PRODECO project for survey and clearance are to conduct non-technical survey in 30 zones in the Lake Chad and Tibesti region, to release 2.7km²of mined land in Borkou, Tibesti, and Ennedi, to release 200,000m²of mined land along roads in Tibesti, and, in the Lake Chad and Tibesti regions, to release 50,000m²of land contaminated with other ERW or conduct 100 spot tasks.[25] A third international operator, FSD, is to provide technical support, training, and capacity-building to the HCND, including support for the use of the Information Management System for Mine Action (IMSMA).[26]

Strategic planning

Following the request of the Mine Ban Treaty’s Thirteenth Meeting of States Parties, the CND elaborated a national mine action plan for 2014–2019, with technical support from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). The plan gave details on the number, location, and size of remaining mined areas, and provided the following timeline:

In June 2015–June 2019, operations would be conducted in Borkou;
In January 2015–April 2019, operations would be conducted in Ennedi;
In May–December 2015, operations would be conducted in Moyen Chari;
In September 2015–February 2016, operations would be conducted in Sila; and
In November 2014–November 2019, operations would be conducted in Tibesti.[27]

The plan notes that Chad adhered to the Convention on Cluster Munitions but does not detail plans to clear cluster munition remnants.[28] According to MAG, the HCND assigns areas for clearance and decides on priorities in consultation with mine action operators.[29]

As of June 2018, the national mine action plan was in the process of being updated.[30]

Standards

HI began a review of Chad’s national mine action standards for land release and quality management at the start of 2016. In September 2017, HI reported that 11 national mine action standards had been updated and issued, following HCND approval.[31]

Quality management

In 2017, Level 1 explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) quality assurance training was carried out with the HCND as part of the PRODECO project.[32]

Information management

The HCND uses the IMSMA database. As part of the PRODECO project, the database was being updated in 2018 by the HCND’s information management team, under the supervision of an FSD expert.[33]

Operators

On 10 May 2017, a media source reported that 755 deminers employed by the CND began a strike over 10 months of wages that had not been paid by the Ministry of Economy and Development Planning.[34]

As part of the PRODECO project, HI is focusing on survey and clearance in the Borkou and Ennedi regions, while MAG is working in the Tibesti and Lake Chad regions.[35]

MAG was planning to deploy demining teams under the new EU PRODECO project in June 2018 but, as of September, had not yet been able to start clearance due to issues with security in Tibesti. MAG started operations in the Lake Chad region and, as of September, had conducted non-technical survey in seven areas.[36]

Deminer safety

According to the report, the deminers had carried out several missions in the north, east, and west of the country to open roads linking Chad to neighboring Libya and Niger and to secure settlement areas, during which a number were killed and others suffered traumatic amputations in mine blasts.[37]

Land Release

No landmine or cluster munition survey or clearance operations were reported in Chad during 2017. Nearly 0.58km²was released by clearance and technical survey the previous year.[38]

In 2016, MAG and HI conducted survey in the Tibesti and Borkou regions, confirming over 16.24km²as contaminated with mines.[39] In December 2016, HI carried out an evaluation of the needs for survey and clearance in Borkou and the west of Ennedi region to prepare for the start of the new four-year EU-funded demining project. It reported identifying more than 40km²of area as mined, 2.7km²as contaminated with ERW, and a total of 147 open suspected or confirmed hazardous areas.[40]

Progress in 2018

The priorities for 2018 were the Borkou, Ennedi, and Tibesti regions in which six manual demining teams, one non-technical survey team, and two mechanical demining teams were to be deployed, as well as a non-technical survey/community liaison team in the Lake Chad region.[41]

Mine Ban Treaty Article 5 Compliance

Under Article 5 of the Mine Ban Treaty (and in accordance with the six-year extension granted by States Parties in 2013), Chad is required to destroy all antipersonnel mines in mined areas under its jurisdiction or control as soon as possible, but not later than 1 January 2020. Chad will not meet this deadline and will require a further extension.

As of June 2018, Chad was in the process of preparing its fourth extension request.[42] Its latest extension request, granted in 2013, noted as circumstances impeding compliance with its Article 5 obligations: a lack of financial support; the size of the country and poor road network; information management problems; mismanagement at the CND; and a lack of transparency in resources management, as well as security issues. As of 2018, however, the full extent of the challenge remains unknown, as further survey still needs to be conducted.

In 2013, Chad was requested by States Parties to report on the result of a mid-term evaluation of its national mine action strategy by the end of 2015, and to revise the strategy on the basis of updated information, if required. As of mid-2018, it had yet to do so.[43]

Convention on Cluster Munitions Article 4 Compliance

Under Article 4 of the Convention on Cluster Munitions, Chad is required to destroy all cluster munition remnants in areas under its jurisdiction or control as soon as possible, but not later than 1 September 2023. It is unclear whether Chad is on track to meet this deadline. It has conducted no clearance of cluster munition-contaminated areas in the last five years.

In its Article 7 transparency report for 2016, Chad reported that two submunitions had been found and cleared in the regions of Borkou and Tibesti.[44] In Chad’s Article 7 report for 2017, Form F (which concerns contamination and clearance) was reported as “Not applicable.”[45]

The Monitor acknowledges the contributions of the Mine Action Review (www.mineactionreview.org), which has conducted the primary mine action research in 2018 and shared all its country-level landmine reports (from“Clearing the Mines 2018”) and country-level cluster munition reports (from “Clearing Cluster Munition Remnants 2018”) with the Monitor. The Monitor is responsible for the findings presented online and in its print publications.

[1] Email from Soultani Moussa, Manager/Administrator, HCND, 19 June 2018.

[2] Statement of Chad, Mine Ban Treaty Fourteenth Meeting of States Parties, Geneva, 2 December 2015. This was also reported in Chad’s Mine Ban Treaty Article 7 transparency report (for calendar year 2015), Form C.

[3] HCND, “Plan d’action prévisionnel 2014–2019 de mise en œuvre de la composante déminage et dépollution de la Stratégie de l’action contre les mines au Tchad” (“Mine Action Plan 2014–2019”), May 2014.

[4] Ibid.

[5] Ibid.

[6] Email from Soultani Moussa, HCND, 19 June 2018.

[7] HCND, “Mine Action Plan 2014–2019,” May 2014; and responses to questionnaire by Romain Coupez, MAG, 3 May 2017; and by Benjamin Westercamp, and Seydou N’Gaye, HI, 22 March 2017.

[8] Response to questionnaire by Romain Coupez, MAG, 3 May 2017.

[9] Email from Julien Kempeneers, HI, 2 May 2016.

[10] “Boko Haram landmine kills four Chadian soldiers,” Reuters, 27August 2016.

[11] “Tchad: un véhicule d’orpailleurs saute sur une mine près de Zouar dans le Tibesti, 8 morts et 11 blessés,” Tchad Convergence, 20 August 2017.

[12] “Nigeria: Boko Haram – Military Winning the Lake Chad War Despite Losses – General Irabor,” Premium Times, 29 April 2018.

[13] Mine Ban Treaty Article 7 Report (for calendar year 2017), Form I.

[14] HI, Fatal Footprint: The Global Human Impact of Cluster Munitions (Brussels, 2006), p. 17; HI, Circle of Impact: The Fatal Footprint of Cluster Munitions on People and Communities (Brussels, 2007), p. 48; Survey Action Center, “Landmine Impact Survey, Republic of Chad,” Washington, DC, 2002, p. 59; and Human Rights Watch and Landmine Action, Banning Cluster Munitions: Government Policy and Practice (Mines Action Canada, Ottawa, 2009), p. 56.

[15] Emails from Liebeschitz Rodolphe, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), 21 February 2011; and from Bruno Bouchardy, MAG Chad, 11 March 2011.

[16] Convention on Cluster Munitions Article 7 Report (for calendar year 2015), Form F; and email from Llewelyn Jones, Director of Programmes, MAG, 31 May 2016.  

[17] Convention on Cluster Munitions Article 7 Report (for calendar year 2015), Form H.  

[18] Emails from Romain Coupez, MAG, 10 May 2017, and 31 May 2018; and response to questionnaire, 3 May 2017.

[19] Statement of Chad, Convention on Cluster Munitions Third Meeting of States Parties, Oslo, 13 September 2012.

[20] Convention on Cluster Munitions Article 7 Report (for calendar year 2013), Form F.  

[21] Email from Romain Coupez, MAG, 4 July 2018.

[22] Emails from Soultani Moussa, HCND, 19 June and 3 July 2018.

[23] HI, “Country Profile, Chad,” September 2017.

[24] Ibid.

[25] Email from Soultani Moussa, HCND, 14 September 2018.

[26] Ibid.

[27] HCND, “Mine Action Plan 2014–2019,” May 2014. Previously, in 2013, the government of Chad had approved a strategic mine action plan for 2013–2017 that aimed, among other things, to develop and maintain an effective data collection and management system, strengthen national mine action capacities, and clear contaminated areas. Mine Action Strategic Plan 2013–2017, annexed to Third Article 5 deadline Extension Request, 2 May 2013.

[28] HCND, “Mine Action Plan 2014–2019,” May 2014, p. 4.  

[29] Email from Romain Coupez, MAG, 3 May 2017.

[30] Email from Soultani Moussa, HCND, 19 June 2018.

[31] Email from Julien Kempeneers, HI, 5 September 2017.

[32] Email from Soultani Moussa, HCND, 19 June 2018.

[33] Ibid.

[34] “Tchad: grève des démineurs restés 10 mois sans salaire” (“Chad: deminers strike after 10 months without pay”), Agence de Presse Africaine, 10 May 2017; and email from Julien Kempeneers, HI, 26 September 2017.

[35] HI, “Country Profile Chad,” September 2017.

[36] Email from Romain Coupez, MAG, 13 September 2018.

[37] “Tchad: grève des démineurs restés 10 mois sans salaire” (“Chad: deminers strike after 10 months without pay”), Agence de Presse Africaine, 10 May 2017; and email from Julien Kempeneers, HI, 26 September 2017.

[38] Responses to questionnaire by Romain Coupez, MAG, 3 May 2017; and email, 21 September 2017; response to questionnaire by Benjamin Westercamp, and Seydou N’Gaye, HI, 22 March 2017; and email from Julien Kempeneers, HI, 5 September 2017.

[39] Response to questionnaire by Romain Coupez, MAG, 3 May 2017; and email from Julien Kempeneers, HI, 5 September 2017.

[40] Emails from Julien Kempeneers, HI, 5 and 26 September 2017.

[41] Email from Soultani Moussa, HCND, 19 June 2018.

[42] Ibid.

[43] “Preliminary observations of the Committee on Article 5 Implementation (Switzerland, Chile, Colombia and the Netherlands),” Mine Ban Treaty Intersessional Meetings, Geneva, 7–8 June 2018.

[44] Convention on Cluster Munitions Article 7 Report (for calendar year 2016), Form F.

[45] Convention on Cluster Munitions Article 7 Report (for calendar year 2017), Form F.

Support for Mine Action

Last updated: 05 October 2015

Since 2010, the government of the Republic of Chad has contributed almost US$11 million to its mine action program, including $3.13 million in 2012, its largest contribution ever reported.[1] In 2014, Chad contributed US$2.77 million to its national mine action centre (Centre National de Déminage, CND), however, no funding was allocated to land release operations.[2]

In 2014, the European Union (EU) was Chad’s sole international mine action donor, contributing €767,000 ($1,019,880) as part of the PADEMIN project (Projet d’appui au secteur du déminage au Tchad) to conduct clearance in the northern regions of Borkou, Ennedi, and Tibesti.[3] This follows the European Commission decision of November 2013 to contribute €5.4 million ($7.1 million) to support demining efforts in Chad through the 10^th European Development Fund, of which €3.5 million ($4.6 million) would be allocated to demining and land release operations and €300,000 (some $400,000 at the time) to information management.[4] PADEMIN project has allowed Mines Advisory Group (MAG), Chad’s sole international operator that previously had to withdrew from the country due to lack of funding, to resume its demining activities in late 2014.

In May 2014, Chad submitted its mine action plan for 2014–2019 in which it estimated its remaining contamination at 103.5km², although more areas could still be identified as further survey needs to be conducted in four regions.[5] It also provided a budget of approximately US$61 million, including $40 million for operations and technical assistance, $4.5 million for equipment, and $16.6 million for CND’s running costs. Chad has planned to contribute about 30% of total funding ($16.6 million).[6] At the Mine Ban Treaty Third Review Conference in June 2014, Chad acknowledged the challenges faced by its national mine action centre and called for the resumption of technical and operational assistance in order to be able to comply with its Article 5 obligations.[7]

As of October 2015, support from the EU was the only international contribution mobilized for Chad’s extension period, meaning that $37 million is yet to be mobilized to carry out clearance without any further interruption.

Summary of contributions: 2010–2014[8]

Year	National contributions ($)	International contributions ($)	Total contributions ($)
2014	2,766,667	1,019,880	3,786,547
2013	N/R	702,943	702,943
2012	3,135,353	3,645,221	6,780,574
2011	2,934,000	1,843,636	4,777,636
2010	2,095,380	1,665,238	3,760,618
Total	10,931,400	8,876,918	19,808,318

Note: N/R = not reported

[1] High Commission for National Demining (HCND), Mine Action Plan 2014–2019, May 2014.

[2] Ibid.

[3] Email from Jérôme Legrand, Policy Officer, Weapons of Mass Destruction, Conventional Weapons and Space Division (K1), European External Action Service (EEAS), 11 June 2015; and MAG, “New Help For More Than 400,000 People in Chad,” 15 December 2014. Annual exchange rate for 2014: €1=US$1.3297. US Federal Reserve, “List of Exchange Rates (Annual),” 2 January 2015.

[4] European Commission Decision, C(2013) 7731 Final, 8 November 2013. Annual exchange rate for 2013: €1=US$1.3281. US Federal Reserve, “List of Exchange Rates (Annual),” 2 January 2015.

[5] HCND, Mine Action Plan 2014–2019, May 2014.

[6] Ibid, pp. 11–12.

[7] Statement of Chad, Mine Ban Treaty Third Review Conference, Maputo, June 2014.

[8] See previous Monitor reports.

Casualties

Last updated: 10 October 2018

Casualties
All known casualties (through 2017)	3,157 mine/explosive remnants of war (ERW) casualties: 1,212 killed; 1,745 injured; 200 unknown*
Casualties in 2017[1]
Annual total	146	A sharp increase from 27 in 2016
Survival outcome	33 killed; 113 injured
Device type causing casualties	47 antivehicle mine; 8 undefined mine; 91 ERW
Civilian status	1 military; 46 civilians; 99 unknown
Age and gender	47 men; 99 unknown

Casualties in 2017 – details

Casualty trends

The Republic of Chad included data on 146 new mine/ERW casualties in reporting for 2017.[2] This sharp annual increase in the number of causalities recorded marked a continuation of the fluctuations in annual casualty totals of previous years: 27 in 2016, six in 2015, 79 in 2014, and 20 in 2013.[3]

Similarly, data reported in previous years was inconsistent and not indicative of trends.[4]

*Total casualties

At least 3,157 mine/ERW casualties had been identified by the end of 2017; 1,212 people were killed, another 1,745 were injured, and the survival of 200 people was unknown.[5]

Cluster munition casualties

No cluster munition casualties were identified for 2017 and 2016.[6] In 2015, there were at least four casualties (three girls, and one boy) caused by cluster munition remnants.[7] The number of casualties caused by unexploded cluster submunitions or the use of cluster munitions in Chad remains unknown due to a lack of detailed and comprehensive data collection.[8]

[1] Unless otherwise indicated, casualty data for 2017 is based on: Mine Ban Treaty Article 7 Report (for calendar year 2017), Form J, 29 March 2018; and Geneva International Centre for Humanitarian Demining (GICHD)-Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) antivehicle mine database provided by email from Ursign Hofmann, Policy Advisor, GICHD, 22 February 2018.

[2] Total casualty numbers in its Article 7 report did not equal the reported total. The total casualties included in the data is 146, not the 136 total reported. Mine Ban Treaty Article 7 Report (for calendar year 2017), Form J, 29 March 2018.

[3] In 2013, the Monitor had reported nine casualties (one killed; eight injured) in Chad thanks to data provided by Zienaba Tidjani Ali, of the National Demining Center (Centre National de Déminage, CND), on 17 July 2014. However, in 2014, the CND reported that for 2013 it identified 20 victims (nine killed; 11 injured) in nine separate incidents. See, response to Monitor questionnaire by Zienaba Tidjani Ali, CND, 26 March 2015; and presentation of Chad, “18th International Meeting of Mine Action National Programme Directors and UN Advisors - Plenary Session Six: Victim Assistance and Mine/ERW Risk Education,” 17 February 2015.

[4] The CND reported 44 new mine/ERW casualties (13 killed; 31 injured) between 2010 and 2012, but did not provide differentiated data for each year. However, the total figure was inconsistent with previous CND reports of annual casualty rates and Monitor casualty data. In 2010, the CND reported 64 casualties for 2009, but by 2011 the 2009 casualty figure had been revised to 39. Email from Assane Ngueadoum, Technical Advisor for Strategic Planning and Operations, CND, 14 March 2011. Of the 131 casualties reported in Chad for 2008, 122 casualties were recorded by the CND and nine were identified through media monitoring from 1 January 2008 to 31 December 2008. Monitor analysis of CND, “General list of mine/ERW victims/2008” (“Liste générale des victimes des mines et autres engins non explosés/2008”), provided by Assane Ngueadoum, CND, 15 April 2009; and email from Assane Ngueadoum, CND, 22 May 2009.

[5] In 2008, Chad reported that by December 2007, 2,632 casualties were recorded (1,143 killed; 1,489 injured). There were 131 casualties reported in 2008, 39 in 2009, 28 in 2010, 34 in 2011, 15 in 2012, 20 in 2013, 79 in 2014, six in 2015, 27 in 2016, and 146 in 2017. See previous editions of the Monitor on the Monitor website; and Mine Ban Treaty Article 7 Report (for calendar year 2017), Form J, 29 March 2018.

[6] Convention on Cluster Munitions Article 7 Report (for calendar year 2017), 4 June 2018; and Convention on Cluster Munitions Article 7 Report (for calendar year 2016), 5 March 2016.

[7] Convention on Cluster Munitions Article 7 Report (for calendar year 2015), Form H, 5 March 2016.

[8] Handicap International (HI), Circle of Impact: The Fatal Footprint of Cluster Munitions on People and Communities (Brussels: HI, May 2007), p. 48. It is likely that there have been unexploded submunition casualties in Chad. However, despite ERW incidents in regions contaminated by cluster submunitions, unexploded submunition casualties were not differentiated from other ERW casualties. Landmine Impact Survey data also showed that the most common activity at the time of each incident was tampering with ERW.

Victim Assistance

Last updated: 18 July 2018

Victim assistance action points

Improve and systematize casualty data collection.
Increase services in all areas of victim assistance, particularly physical rehabilitation and employment, and improve survivors’ access to services.
Enhance victim assistance coordination and align with disability-rights coordination.
Increase investment in physical rehabilitation services.
Adopt the revised National Plan of Action on Victim Assistance.
Implement the law protecting the rights of persons with disabilities.

Victim assistance planning and coordination

Government focal point	National High Commission for Demining (Haut Commissariat National de Déminage, HCND)
Coordination mechanisms	HCND[1]
Coordination regularity/frequency and outcomes/effectiveness	Monthly victim assistance coordination meetings took place,[2] however Chad did not note the occurrence of coordination activities in its Article 7 reports for 2017[3]
Plans/strategies	National Plan of Action on Victim Assistance (Plan d’Action National d’Assistance aux Victimes, PANAV), which has yet to be adopted[4]
Disability sector integration	Disabled people’s organizations (DPOs) and mine survivors were part of the Network of Rehabilitation Actors in Chad (Réseau des acteurs de la réhabilitation au Tchad, RART)[5]
Survivor inclusion and participation	Survivors were involved in victim assistance coordination meetings, public events, and advocacy training[6]
Reporting (Article 7 and statements)	Mine Ban Treaty Article 7 Report (for calendar year 2017), Form J; and Convention on Cluster Munitions Article 7 Report (for calendar year 2017), Form H

International commitments and obligations

The Republic of Chad is responsible for a significant number of landmine survivors, cluster munition victims, and survivors of other explosive remnants of war (ERW) who are in need. The total number of mine/ERW survivors in Chad is not known, though there were thought to be more than 1,877[7]
Mine Ban Treaty	Yes
Convention on Cluster Munitions	Yes
Convention on Conventional Weapons (CCW) Protocol V	No
Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD)	Signed (in 2012)

Laws and policies

A new National Plan of Action on Victim Assistance was developed in 2016, but it was still pending approval as of the end of 2017.[8] There was an initiative to establish a Victim Assistance Coordination Group (Groupe de Coordination pour l’Assistance aux Victimes, GCAV) once the action plan is adopted.[9] The previous National Plan of Action on Victim Assistance 2012–2014 was developed in 2010 and expired with almost none of the actions implemented despite the adoption of an implementation strategy for the plan in 2013.[10]

The Ministry of Women, Early Childhood Protection, and National Solidarity has been reported to be responsible for assuring the rights of persons with disabilities through its Directorate for the Inclusion of Persons with Disabilities (Direction nationale pour la réinsertion des personnes handicapées) and the Ministry of Public Health for physical rehabilitation. Humanity & Inclusion (formerly Handicap International, HI) worked with these ministries and the Ministry of Planning and International Cooperation and Ministry of Defense.[11]

The law protects the rights of persons with disabilities and prohibits discrimination against them, however, the government did not effectively enforce the law. No legislation exists to ensure access to buildings for persons with disabilities.[12] DPOs reported marginalization of and discrimination against persons with disabilities.[13]

The 2007 law on the protection of persons with disabilities was still pending promulgation as at the end of 2017.[14]

Major Developments in 2017–2018

The ICRC finished its supporting role to the rehabilitation sector of Chad at the end of 2016, and HI assumed the role of the main international organization involved in supporting the sector.[15]

HI was implementing two relevant European Union-funded projects during the period: the Project to Support the Demining Sector in Chad (Projet d’Appui au secteur du déminage du Tchad, PADEMIN), which will end in October 2018, and the new four-year Project for Social Protection, Demining and Economic Development (Protection sociale, déminage et développement économique, PRODECO), launched in October 2017.[16]

HI identified improvements in the accessibility of health and education services following awareness-raising trainings on victim assistance and disability rights in 2016.[17]

Needs assessment

The HCND reported that no data collection and needs assessment activities were conducted in 2017.[18] However, HI conducted an identification, referral, and needs assessment pilot project that was ongoing in the provinces of Borkou and Ouaddaï, within the framework of the PADEMIN Project.[19] That project will end in October 2018 in Ouaddaï.[20] Under the new four-year project PRODECO, a survey of persons with disabilities and an assessment of their needs was being conducted in Borkou.[21]

Medical care and rehabilitation

Mine/ERW survivors and their families faced the glaring problem of access to services.[22] Health services in contaminated areas were limited, with few qualified personnel, and there were no rehabilitation services in these areas.[23]

In 2017, HI supported the strengthening of the production capacity of the Kabalaye Limb-fitting and Rehabilitation Center (Centre d’appareillage et de rééducation de Kabalaye, CARK).[24] HI also created a social fund for mine/ERW victims, persons with disabilities, and vulnerable persons.[25] It continued to build the capacity of victim assistance and disability actors, including the CND, relevant national authorities, international organizations, and civil society organizations in the provinces of Borkou and Ouaddaï.[26]

Under PRODECO, the rehabilitation center Catholic Relief and Development (Secours Catholique et Développement, SECADEV) received funds to produce prostheses for persons with disabilities and to conduct referrals.[27]

Socio-economic and psychosocial inclusion

In 2017, HI and Cooperazione Internazionale (COOPI) continued to implement a social inclusion and inclusive education project in the Lake Chad region.[28]

Cross-cutting

There were some improvements in age- and gender-sensitive health and education services.[29]

Victim assistance providers and activities

Name of organization	Type of activity
Government
National High Commission for Demining (Haut Commissariat National de Déminage, HCND)	Victim assistance coordination; needs assessment[30]
National
Voice of Persons with Disabilities (Voix des Personnes Handicapées, VPH)	Social inclusion and psychological support activities using a community-based approach; advocacy for the ratification of the CRPD
Catholic Relief and Development (Secours Catholique et Développement, SECADEV)	Prostheses and referrals[31]
Notre Dame House of Peace (Maison Notre Dame de Paix, MNDP)	Physical rehabilitation in Moundou, southern Chad
Kabalaye Limb-fitting and Rehabilitation Center (Centre d’appareillage et de rééducation de Kabalaye, CARK)	Physical rehabilitation and prostheses in N’Djamena, victim assistance coordination
National Limb-fitting and Rehabilitation Center (Centre National pour l’Appareillage et la Réadaptation, CNAR)	Physical rehabilitation, prostheses, victim assistance coordination
Association of Mutual Aid of Physically Disabled of Chad (Association d’Entraide aux Handicapés Physique du Tchad, AEHPT)	Advocacy; psychological support; and social inclusion for all persons with disabilities
International
Humanity & Inclusion (HI)	Support to victim assistance national coordination; advocacy; capacity-building of local NGOs and survivors associations; support to the rehabilitation sector; social inclusion and inclusive education[32]

[1] Response to Monitor questionnaire by Jason Mudingay, Head of Demining Operations, and Paulin Askem, Victim Assistance Project Manager, Humanity & Inclusion (HI), 11 June 2018.

[2] The following organizations participate in victim assistance coordination meetings: Ministry of Health, Ministry of Social Welfare, disabled persons’ organizations (DPOs), the National Limb-fitting and Rehabilitation Center (Centre National pour l’Appareillage et la Réadaptation, CNAR), the Kabalaye Limb-fitting and Rehabilitation Center (Centre d’appareillage et de rééducation de Kabalaye, CARK), United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), HI, etc. Response to Monitor questionnaire by Jason Mudingay, and Paulin Askem, HI, 11 June 2018.

[3] Mine Ban Treaty Article 7 Report (for calendar year 2017), Form J, 29 March 2018; and Convention on Cluster Munitions Article 7 Report (for calendar year 2017), Form H, 4 June 2018.

[4] Mine Ban Treaty Article 7 Report (for calendar year 2017), Form J, 29 March 2018; and Convention on Cluster Munitions Article 7 Report (for calendar year 2017), Form H, 4 June 2018.

[5] The RART was created in 2013 to address physical rehabilitation needs in Chad. Response to Monitor questionnaire by Jason Mudingay, and Paulin Askem, HI, 11 June 2018; ICRC, “Annual Report 2013,” Geneva, 14 May 2014, p. 132; and statement of Chad, Mine Ban Treaty Thirteenth Meeting of States Parties, Geneva, 4 December 2013.

[6] Response to Monitor questionnaire by Jason Mudingay and Paulin Askem, HI, 11 June 2018.

[7] The Monitor calculates that in total some 1,877 survivors have been reported through various sources. At least 1,588 survivors had been identified by the CND through December 2008. An additional 67 casualties were reported in 2009 and 2010, of which at least half were likely injured based on previously reported ratios of killed to injured casualties. Twenty-eight additional survivors were reported in 2011, 10 in 2012, 11 in 2013, 63 in 2014, four in 2015, 27 in 2016, and 113 in 2017. See previous editions of the Monitor; and Mine Ban Treaty Article 7 Report (for calendar years 2017 and 2018), Form J.

[8] Mine Ban Treaty Article 7 Report (for calendar year 2017), Form J, 29 March 2018; and Convention on Cluster Munitions Article 7 Report (for calendar year 2017), Form H, 4 June 2018.

[9] The Victim Assistance Coordination Group will be composed of the HCND, CNAR, HI, and two DPOs. Mine Ban Treaty Article 7 Report (for calendar year 2017), Form J, 29 March 2018.

[10] Statement of Chad, Mine Ban Treaty Thirteenth Meeting of States Parties, Geneva, 4 December 2013; responses to Monitor questionnaire by Anne Catherine Roussel, ICRC, 7 April 2014, and 1 August 2016; and email, 9 April 2014; and interview with Zienaba Tidjani Ali, CND, in Geneva, 23 June 2011.

[11] Response to Monitor questionnaire by Jason Mudingay, and Paulin Askem, HI, 11 June 2018.

[12] United States Department of State, “Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2017: Chad,” Washington, DC, 20 April 2018.

[13] Djimet Wiche Wahili, “Tchad : graves violations des droits des handicapés selon une association” (“Chad: serious violations of the rights of the disabled according to an association”), Alwihda Info, 11 November 2017.

[14] Convention on Cluster Munitions Article 7 Report (for calendar year 2017), Form H, 4 June 2018.

[15] Response to Monitor questionnaire by Jason Mudingay, and Paulin Askem, HI, 11 June 2018.

[16] Ibid.; and by Julien Kempeneers, and the Chad team, HI, August 2016; and HI, “Country Card Chad,” September 2017, p. 2.

[17] Response to Monitor questionnaire by Jason Mudingay, and Paulin Askem, HI, 11 June 2018; and by Julien Kempeneers, and the Chad Team, HI, August 2016; and HI, “Country Card Chad,” September 2017, p. 2.

[18] Convention on Cluster Munitions Article 7 Report (for calendar year 2017), Form H, 4 June 2018.

[19] Response to Monitor questionnaire by Jason Mudingay, and Paulin Askem, HI, 11 June 2018; and HI, “Country Card Chad,” September 2017, p. 2.

[20] Responses to Monitor questionnaire by Jason Mudingay, and Paulin Askem, HI, 11 June 2018; by Benjamin Westercamp, HI, 13 March 2017; and by Julien Kempeneers, and the Chad Team, HI, August 2016.

[21] Response to Monitor questionnaire by Jason Mudingay, and Paulin Askem, HI, 11 June 2018.

[22] Mine Ban Treaty Article 7 Report (for calendar year 2017), Form J, 29 March 2018.

[23] Statement of Chad, Mine Ban Treaty Intersessional Meetings, Geneva, 7 June 2018.

[24] HI, “Country Card Chad,” September 2017, p. 2.

[25] Ibid.

[26] Ibid.; and response to Monitor questionnaire by Jason Mudingay and Paulin Askem, HI, 11 June 2018.

[27] Response to Monitor questionnaire by Jason Mudingay and Paulin Askem, HI, 11 June 2018.

[28] Ibid.

[29] Ibid.

[30] Ibid.

[31] Ibid.

[32] Ibid.