Chad

C

Principal Cities

N’Djamena, with a population of 797,000 (2003 estimate), is the largest city as well as the capital. Other large settlements are Sarh, formerly Fort-Archambault, population 193,753 (1993), Moundou, 282,103 (1993), and Abéché, 187,936 (1993).

D

Religion

Muslims make up about 50 per cent of the population. About 25 per cent of the people are Christians. Traditional religions are adhered to by 25 per cent of the population.

E

Language

The official languages of Chad are Standard Arabic and French (3,000 first-language speakers), but around 131 different African languages are spoken. Standard Arabic is not a mother tongue but is learnt in schools and some churches, hence only the well-educated minority have fluency in it. Chadian Spoken Arabic is the most widely spoken language in Chad, with 754,590 speakers. Other important national languages include Ngambay (from the Nilo-Saharan language family; 750,000 speakers); Kanembu (Nilo-Saharan; 389,028); Maba (Nilo-Saharan; 250,000); Naba (Nilo-Saharan; 232,448); Sar (Nilo-Saharan; 183,471); and Musey (Chadic; 175,640).

F

Education

In 2000 Chad had an adult literacy rate of about 54 per cent. Yearly school attendance in 2000 was estimated at 984,224 primary-school pupils and 123,408 secondary-school students. In 1994, 2,800 students were enrolled in technical schools and teacher-training establishments. The country’s single university is the University of N’Djamena (1971); it has about 2,800 students. Overall, in 1999, 5,901 students were at college or university. In 1996, 2.6 per cent of gross national product (GNP) was spent on education.

IV

Economy

Chad had a GNP in 2004 of US$2,332 million, equivalent to US$450 per capita, one of the lowest in the world. In 1992 national budget figures showed revenues of about US$120 million and expenditures of some US$363 million.

The economy of Chad is based largely on subsistence farming; 83 per cent of the labour force was engaged in farming and animal husbandry in 1990. Adverse climatic conditions, particularly drought, geographical remoteness, absence of resources, political corruption, and lack of infrastructure make Chad one of the world’s most underdeveloped countries and it is highly dependent on foreign aid, particularly for food. Its economy is hindered by political turmoil, food shortages, and a protracted civil war in the late 1980s.

Chad is a member of the Franc Zone, and the monetary unit is the CFA franc of 100 centimes (449.18 CFA francs equalled US$1; 2008). In January 1994 the fixed exchange rate of the CFA franc against the French franc was devalued by 50 per cent. Of all the francophone countries in Africa, Chad benefited the least from the devaluation, with the country enduring high inflation. In 2000 imports totalled US$290 million, and export earnings were about US$183 million.