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Chad - Learn, Explore and Travel

Ranked #1,245 in Travel & Places, #50,341 overall

"It still pays to watch your step in turbulent Chad." source - Lonely Planet

Geography: Central Africa, south of Libya Climate: tropical in south, desert in north
Terrain: broad, arid plains in center
Desert in north, mountains in northwest, lowlands in south. The economy is based on agriculture, forestry and fishing. However the industries also include oil, cotton textiles, beer brewing and meat packing.

Chad in the Spotlight

Tribal Delegation

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21st Century Complete Guide to Chad - Encyclopedic Coverage, Country Profile, History, DOD, State Dept., White House, CIA Factbook (Two CD-ROM Set)

by: U.S. Government

Amazon Price: $25.00 (as of 02/16/2012)
List Price: $25.00

Completely updated and revised for this new edition, our unique electronic book on two CD-ROMs has an amazing collection of the finest federal documents and resources about Chad, providing encyclopedic coverage of all aspects of the country.

Quality Chad Sites

BBC - Chad country profile: Chad and Sudan accuse each other of backing and harbouring rebels, and the dispute led to severing of relations in 2006. However, since then, progress has been made towards normalising ties, with the two countries' presidents meeting for the first time in six years in 2010.
Chad, Africa. African country, people, news, culture, charities, tourism (safari, nature, animals), etc.: Part of France's African holdings until 1960, Chad endured three decades of civil warfare as well as invasions by Libya before a semblance of peace was finally restored in 1990. The government eventually drafted a democratic constitution, and held flawed presidential elections in 1996 and 2001.
Republic of Chad, Africa, Chad, N'Djamena, Chadian Arabic, Chad Travel, Abeche Pictures: Chad and N'Djamena travel guide, Chad pictures and video, African investment and the Chadian economy, Tchad news and updates, and information on Lake Chad and Abeche: Chad NOW

Camel Caravan Traveling East, Chad, Africa

Camel Caravan Traveling East, Chad, Africa Photographic Print

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In modern Chad, social stratification is seen in the emergent class of big traders, landowners and government people (who invest in property, industry, and livestock keeping); the large majority of common peasants and pastoralists, fighting for survival with little means; and a small but vocal urban working class of some sixty thousand. There is no clear-cut division of elites according to regional provenance; for example, the elite does not consist only of northerners. Since the 1970s, membership in a successful armed movement could serve as a way to social advancement, since the resources of the state were then within reach.

Many societies in Chad traditionally have different low-prestige occupational castes, such as hunters, potters, tanners, and blacksmiths ( haddad ). There are also groups of slave descendants that live in pockets of the north, such as the Kadjidi near Lake Chad, and the Kamadja, who form relatively self-contained communities and do not inter-marry with their Tubu masters/employers. A similar group in the south are the Yalna in the Salamat region. Modern education, social change, and the mobilizing effect of the armed movements have partially invalidated traditional prejudices and divisions relating to caste membership.

Don't head for Africa without Africa on a Shoestring in your pack

Lonely Planet Africa on a Shoestring

by: Kevin Anglin, Becca Blond, Jean-Bernard Carillet

Amazon Price: $30.00 (as of 02/16/2012)

Africa on a Shoestring is a great guide, with information on places to stay and what to see, for travelers who don't want to spend a fortune and aren't afraid to get out and actually experience the local culture.

Sous-Prefecture of Zouar, Tibesti, Chad, Africa

The seat of the derde, the highest religious and political authority among the Teda of the Tibesti, the town came under French control in 1917

Sous-Prefecture of Zouar, Tibesti, Chad, Africa Photographic Print

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Chad (; , '), officially known as the Republic of Chad', is a landlocked country in central Africa. It is bordered by Libya to the north, Sudan to the east, the Central African Republic to the south, Cameroon and Nigeria to the southwest, and Niger to the west. Due to its distance from the sea and its largely desert climate, the country is sometimes referred to as the "Dead Heart of Africa".

Chad is divided into multiple regions: a desert zone in the north, an arid Sahelian belt in the centre and a more fertile Sudanese savanna zone in the south. Lake Chad, after which the country is named, is the largest wetland in Chad and the second largest in Africa. Chads highest peak is the Emi Koussi in the Sahara, and N'Djamena, (formerly Fort-Lamy), the capital, is the largest city. Chad is home to over 200 different ethnic and linguistic groups. Arabic and French are the official languages. Islam and Christianity are the most widely practised religions.

Beginning in the 7th millennium BC, human populations moved into the Chadian basin in great numbers. By the end of the 1st millennium BC, a series of states and empires rose and fell in Chad's Sahelian strip, each focused on controlling the trans-Saharan trade routes that passed through the region. France conquered the territory by 1920 and incorporated it as part of French Equatorial Africa.

In 1960 Chad obtained independence under the leadership of François Tombalbaye. Resentment towards his policies in the Muslim north culminated in the eruption of a long-lasting civil war in 1965. In 1979 the rebels conquered the capital and put an end to the south's hegemony. However, the rebel commanders fought amongst themselves until Hissène Habré defeated his rivals. He was overthrown in 1990 by his general Idriss Déby. Recently, the Darfur crisis in Sudan has spilt over the border and destabilised the nation, with hundreds of thousands of Sudanese refugees living in and around camps in eastern Chad.

While many political parties are active, power lies firmly in the hands of President Déby and his political party, the Patriotic Salvation Movement. Chad remains plagued by political violence and recurrent attempted coups d'état (see Battle of N'Djamena (2006) and Battle of N'Djamena (2008)).

Chad is one of the poorest and most corrupt countries in the world; most inhabitants live in poverty as subsistence herders and farmers. Since 2003 crude oil has become the country's primary source of export earnings, superseding the traditional cotton industry.

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Chad Stuff

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Chad History

cc licensed flickr photo shared by mknobil

Historically, Chad was at the crossroads of major long-distance trade routes such as the Trans-Sahara caravan route to the Libyan and Egyptian coast, to the west, and to the east (into Sudan). Goods traded included slaves, gold, cattle, ivory, arms, and textiles. The kingdoms of the Middle Ages partly emerged on the basis of their establishing control over the southern end of this trade line. Under French rule, much trade was redirected through the south, into Cameroon. In the twentieth century, Chad's trade position steadily declined, the only major trade items being cotton and livestock. Food imports are very limited, except in times of drought. Raw cotton generates over 65 percent of export revenues, while livestock exports account for another 20 percent of revenue. Minor additional exports are dates, rice, meat, gum arabic, and natron.

International Network for Higher Education in Africa - Chad: Provides a brief overview of the history, current enrollment, governance, administration, research and publications of the country's higher education institutions.
Country Profile of Chad: Chad is rich in gold and uranium and stands to benefit from its recently-acquired status as an oil-producing state.
Lonely Planet - Chad: Good tips for traveling to Chad

The Chad Camps

Population: 270,000

There are twelve Darfuri refugee camps in eastern Chad, located up and down the border with Darfur, Sudan. Refugees fleeing the destruction of their villages started arriving at the border in 2003, most of them walking days across unforgiving terrain. The United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) deployed to the region, providing life saving aid and eventually setting up what was supposed to be temporary camps.

Chad - Learn, Explore and Travel

"It still pays to watch your step in turbulent Chad." source - Lonely Planet

Chad in the Spotlight

Tribal Delegation

Quality Chad Sites

Camel Caravan Traveling East, Chad, Africa

Don't head for Africa without Africa on a Shoestring in your pack

Sous-Prefecture of Zouar, Tibesti, Chad, Africa

The seat of the derde, the highest religious and political authority among the Teda of the Tibesti, the town came under French control in 1917

Chad Stuff

Chad History

The Chad Camps

Population: 270,000

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Geography of Chad

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Roots of Violence: A History of War in Chad

Chad in Pictures (Visual Geography.

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