Chad

Where We Work

Context

GCERF delineates the Sahel within the context of the Group of Five Countries for the Sahel, also known as G5 Sahel, the intergovernmental body to promote regional cooperation in development and security matters. Our engagement in the region will directly bolster the implementation of National Action Plans of the five countries working in partnership with local, national, regional, and global partners. Our work began in Mali in 2016 followed by Burkina Faso and Niger in 2021, Chad and Mauritania in 2023.

The Sahel is one of the most deprived regions in the world. It is home to several fragile and conflict-affected states, each ranking low on the UN Human Development Index and beset by multidimensional conflicts. These conflicts have created fertile environments for violent extremism and organised crime in an already fragile regional context. The region is also a source of criminal activities, including human trafficking and the smuggling of people, drugs, and weapons.

Chad is currently ranked 21 on the Global Terrorism Index of 2024, while it was only ranked 118 ten years ago. Deaths in the Sahel constituted 47% of the global total of terrorism deaths in 2023, compared to just one percent in 2007. Over the past 15 years, the number of deaths due to terrorism in the Sahel has increased by 2,860%.

The main drivers of violent extremism are youth unemployment, farmer/herder conflicts and governance-related grievances. Violent extremist groups exploit these grievances and insecurities by propagating narratives of injustice and offering protection in exchange for loyalty.

GCERF’s investment in Chad focuses on improving livelihoods of young people at-risk of radicalisation, preventing extremism through dialogue and conflict mediation, while strengthening community reconciliation mechanisms. Grants will also seek to support the rehabilitation and reintegration of ex-combatants into communities

GCERF-funded programmes engage:

young people (unemployed graduates, Qur’anic students attending Islamic schools who lack government support, teenage boys and girls migrating for better economic opportunities, individuals with family members involved in violent extremist groups)
traditional leaders and religious leaders
ethnic and religious minorities (Buduma and Wahhabis)
women (mothers and single women-headed households)

GCERF aims to achieve the investment objectives through a range of activities conducted by community-based organisations, such as:

trainings and mentorship for young people to improve their income and livelihoods.
awareness campaigns and training courses on peace, fundamental rights, and the strengths of living together despite the ethnic and cultural differences.
improving legal awareness and access to justice by simplifying and popularising texts and laws on fundamental rights in local languages.
strengthening the capacity of women to participate in the local decision-making processes.