Chad Facts

by countryaah · Published June 3, 2019 · Updated April 25, 2020

Chad, State of Central Africa; 1.3 million km², 15.5 million residents (2019).Chad borders in the north to Libya, in the east to Sudan, in the south to the Central African Republic, in the southwest to Cameroon and in the west to Nigeria and Niger. The capital is N’Djamena (1.1 million residents, 2012).

Country facts

Republic of Chad / Republic of Chad
Country abbreviation: TD
Area: 1.3 million km²
Population (2019): 15.5 million residents
Capital: N’Djamena
Main languages: French, Arabic, Chad
State: Republic
Head of State: Idriss Déby (President)
Head of Government: Albert Pahimi Padacké
Per capita GDP (2018): US $ 730
GNI per capita (2018): US $ 670
Currency unit: 1 CFA franc = 100 centimes
Currency code: XAF
Country number (telephony): 235
Internet domain name: td
Time difference compared to Sweden: 0
National Day: August 11 (Independence Day, 1960)

Nature

Land use: forest (25%), agricultural land (3%), other (72%)
Highest mountain: Emi Koussi (3,415 m above sea level)
Largest lake: Lake Chad (12,000-20,000 km² )

Population

Population density (2019): 12 residents per km²
Natural population growth (2019): 3.3%; birth number 44 ‰, death number 11 ‰
Age structure (2019): 0-14 years (48%), 15-64 (50%), 65- (2%)
Life expectancy (2019): men 55 years, women 59 years
Infant mortality (2019): 73 per 1,000 live births
Population forecast 2050: 38 million residents
HDI (2017): 0.404 (place 186 of 189)
Urbanization rate (2019): 23%
Most populous cities (2012): N’Djamena (1.1 million residents), Moundou (137,900), Sarh (103,300)

Business

Industry’s contribution to GDP (2017): agriculture (52%), industry (15%), service (33%)
Exports of goods (2017): US $ 2,464 million
Main export products: oil, livestock, cotton
Main exporting countries: USA, China
Imports of goods (2017): USD 2,160 million
Main import products: machinery and transport, factory goods, food
Main importing countries: China, Cameroon, France
Railway network: nothing in operation

The land surface in Chad is in the form of a large stream, surrounded by mountains except in the west where Lake Chad is located. The soil layer around Lake Chad consists mostly of sand and clay, north of desert and semi-desert soil. In the southeast and along the rivers there are marshlands. The country has tropical climate.

According to the constitution, the president is elected in general elections for five years. The President appoints a Prime Minister who submits proposals for the Ministerial List. The National Assembly is elected in general elections for a four-year term. The country became independent from France in 1960.

Chad’s business sector has so far been dominated by self-sustaining agriculture and livestock management. Drought, civil war and administrative problems have meant that the economy has not developed. In the early 1990s, oil was discovered in the southern parts of the country, and oil production started in the early 1990s. In 2003, a 1,000-km-long oil pipeline was opened to the port city of Kribi in Cameroon, which meant that oil exports quickly became the country’s most important source of income; In 2014, oil accounted for one third of GDP and just over 70 percent of tax revenue. In 2014, new oil fields were put into production.