Transition to development interrupted by recurring crises - In 2011, ACTED in Chad pursued the same objective of supporting a transition from emergency to development. Therefore, emergency programmes had to be set up to meet the needs of populations affected by the Sahel food crisis, but also to refugees from neighbouring countries, as well as migrant workers returning from Libya. The transition to development was able to be carried out in five intervention areas in the Centre, North, East and South of the country, by developing post-emergency strategies focused on a smooth transition with national institutions.

Kick-starting refugee camp exit and return strategies

The relative political stability in the Sahel region came along with the decreasing numbers of refugees in Chad, and stabilising movements in returnee zones. In this context, after several years of interventions and many projects, ACTED put an end to its emergency relief operations for Sudanese refugees in the Eastern part of the country, and for Central African refugees in the South. These interventions were aimed at strengthening food security, protecting the environment, and developing income generating activities. These activities were transferred to national institutions ACTED was able to ensure a smooth transition, in order to guarantee continuity. In Goz Beida, in the East, a water, sanitation and hygiene project aimed at improving living conditions in returnee areas was continued to increase the intervention’s geographical coverage. Through advocacy actions promoted to the Chadian government and international donors, ACTED kick-started an exit strategy in the area, to encourage national organisations to provide basic social services.

Rapid interventions as a response to new emergencies hitting the country

Following evaluations made all along the year 2010, ACTED responded in 2011 to the nutritional crisis affecting the Sahel, by beginning an economic and sanitation support programme for the population of the Batha region (Central-Eastern Chad), affected by the 2009 drought and the 2010 floods. The response consisted in setting up a project aimed at mitigating the food insecurity of the most vulnerable households in Eastern Batha during the lean period (June to September), through income generating activities and community interest work. In the Ouaddai and Batha regions, ACTED intervened in emergency to prevent and mitigate a cholera epidemic striking the Centre and the East of the country in the second part of the year. Finally, responding to the Libyan crisis and to the waves of Chadian returnees in the North and East of the country, ACTED was able to quickly implement projects in water, sanitation and hygiene and livelihood recovery, in order to help households rendered vulnerable by the crisis to provide for their basic needs.

Finding the balance between population empowerment and occasional emergency interventions

In 2012, ACTED will stick to the strategy aimed at steering away from emergency and post-emergency relief, and support recovery for sustainable development in the future. However, following the impact of the food crisis in the Sahel Band, ACTED will focus its emergency interventions in the Lake and Batha regions to make sure the most vulnerable populations will access appropriate food levels during the harsh lean period. In parallel, ACTED will study the specifics of those areas in order to implement projects that will help mitigate the degradation of vulnerable populations’ food and nutrition status. Chronic food insecurity will also be mitigated by creating short-term revenue and mid-term risk reduction. In the Sila and Ouaddai regions in the East, ACTED will continue efforts to improve living conditions and capacity for resilience of local populations, by bettering access to basic services, notably in terms of water, sanitation and hygiene, and the creation of a favourable socioeconomic environment.

Partners in 2011

Centre de Crise (CDC), Programme Alimentaire Mondial (PAM), Haut Commissariat des Nations Unies pour les Réfugiés (UNHCR), Organisation Internationale pour les Migrations (OIM), Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance (OFDA), ProNatura International (PNI), Service d'Aide Humanitaire et de la Protection Civile de la Commission européenne (ECHO), Fonds des Nations Unies pour l’Enfance (UNICEF), Ville de Paris.