Support for families returning from the Central African Republic

As a result of the civil war raging in the Central African Republic (CAR) since December 2013, many inhabitants of the country whose parents and grandparents had immigrated from Chad were threatened and broadly stigmatised as “Chadians”, due to the direct or indirect involvement of Chad in the conflicts in CAR.

Overall, more than 100,000 “returnees” with Chadian roots fled the CAR to Chad. However, here they are foreigners who don’t speak the native language and are often not even Chad nationals. The region around Goré in the southern periphery of Chad is not only faced with the challenge of integrating these returnees but, with violence escalating as a result of elections in the Central African Republic at the end of 2020/start of 2021, accommodating another approx. 1,000 refugees (283 families) who have arrived from CAR.

Thanks to the success of previous projects, it has been possible to establish 200 joint committees involving “returnees” and the local population. During negotiations officially recognised by the local administration, access to 182 hectares of land was secured for 180 repatriated families. As part of the current project, returnees and locals are providing approx. 950 families (7,600 people) with training and start-up assistance in horticulture, agriculture and small livestock breeding, as well as income-generating support for female-led households.

The Redel Foundation is supporting these efforts with €75,000.

Impressions