The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has called for the prioritisation of long-term solutions to Chad’s ongoing humanitarian crisis.

According to the UN refugee agency, the influx of refugees into Chad has made it imperative to find sustainable solutions that best address the refugee crisis which continues to add to the nation’s socio-economic burden.

Chad is home to more than one million forcibly displaced people, including 580,000 refugees from neighbouring Sudan, the Central African Republic and Cameroon who are facing the challenges of armed conflict.

A further 380,000 Chadians who fled insecurity to other areas, and 100,000 former refugees have also returned to the country.

Since achieving independence in 1960, Chad has been in a state of protracted conflict and instability as it continues to experience recurrent violence.

This has resulted in one in three people, or 6.1 million, people in need of humanitarian assistance in 2022 alone, according to estimates by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA).

Food insecurity and malnutrition affect six million people, with 1.7 million people affected by health emergencies, particularly children, and pregnant and breastfeeding women.

Following his recent visit to Chad, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi, said the international community should prioritise long-term solutions to the challenges facing the country and its government in addition to more humanitarian funding.

‘The purpose of my visit here is to help the very generous authorities of Chad, who kept their borders open to all these people, to mobilise resources not only to meet humanitarian needs but also to mobilise development resources in order to create new opportunities for these populations’, he said.

Grandi also urged governments not to overlook the vital contributions of countries like Chad, and to ensure they have adequate resources to continue offering safety to people fleeing their homes.

‘The generosity of local and national authorities must be matched by international donors and development organisations who should provide the necessary resources and expertise to create opportunities for people who cannot yet return home’, Grandi added.

He said Chad cannot do it alone and should not do it alone, hence, the need for immediate support from the international community.

Source: UNHCR

Photo source: UNHCR