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Chad |
Capital: N’Djamena
Languages: French (official), Arabic (official), Sara (in south), more than 120 different languages and dialects
Currency: Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XAF); note - responsible authority is the Bank of the Central African States
Background: Chad, part of France's African holdings until 1960, endured three decades of ethnic warfare as well as invasions by Libya before a semblance of peace was finally restored in 1990. A transitional government eventually suppressed or came to terms with most political-military groups, settled a territorial dispute with Libya on terms favorable to Chad, drafted a democratic constitution, and held multiparty presidential and National Assembly elections in 1996 and 1997 respectively. In 1998, a new rebellion broke out in northern Chad, which sporadically flares up despite two peace agreements signed in 2002 and 2003 between the government and the rebels. Landlocked Chad's economic development suffers from it's geographic remoteness, drought, lack of infrastructure, and political turmoil. About 85% of the population depends on agriculture, including the herding of livestock.
PEOPLE
Population: 9,885,661 (July 2007 est.); 10,543,464 (July 2010 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
2007
Total population: 47.2 years
Male: 46.17 years
Female: 48.27 years (2007 est.)
2010
Total population: 47.99 years
Male: 46.95 years
Female: 49.07 years (2010 est.)
Age structure:
2007
0-14 years: 47.3% (male 2,366,496/female 2,308,155)
15-64 years: 49.8% (male 2,250,211/female 2,676,076)
65 years and over: 2.9% (male 120,666/female 164,057) (2007 est.)
2010
0-14 years: 46.7% (male 2,445,841/female 2,381,319)
15-64 years: 50.4% (male 2,386,428/female 2,816,050)
65 years and over: 2.9% (male 126,351/female 173,219) (2010 est.)
Population growth rate: 2.32% (2007 est.); 2.038% (2010 est.)
Population below poverty line: 80% (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS adult prevalence rate: 3.5% (2006 est.); 3.5% (2007 est.)
People living with HIV/AIDS: 180,000 (2006 est.); 200,000 (2007 est.)
Literacy - definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 47.5%
male: 56%
female: 39.3% (2003 est.)
Refugees and Internally Displaced People:
Refugees (country of origin): 234,000 (Sudan), 41,246 (Central African Republic)
IDPs: 100,000 (2006); IDPs: 178,918 (2007)
ECONOMY
Unemployment rate: N/A
Labour force by Occupation: N/A
Agricultural Products: cotton, sorghum, millet, peanuts, rice, potatoes, manioc (tapioca); cattle, sheep, goats, camels
Industries: oil, cotton textiles, meatpacking, beer brewing, natron (sodium carbonate), soap, cigarettes, construction materials
Exports – Commodities: cotton, cattle, gum arabic, oil
Exports – Partners:
US 80.6%, China 10.4%, South Korea 2.3% (2006)
US 90.06%, France 4.81%, China 1.6% (2009)
Imports – Commodities: machinery and transportation equipment, industrial goods, foodstuffs, textiles
Imports – Partners:
France 18.7%, Cameroon 17.6%, US 12.6%, Germany 7.4%, Saudi Arabia 5%, Belgium 4.9% (2006)
France 17.74%, Cameroon 12.7%, China 11.23%, US 7.59%, Italy 6.54%, Ukraine 5.33%, Netherlands 4.37% (2009)
ENVIRONMENT
Environment – Current issues: inadequate supplies of potable water; improper waste disposal in rural areas contributes to soil and water pollution; desertification
Natural hazards: hot, dry, dusty harmattan winds occur in north; periodic droughts; locust plagues
Source: CIA World Factbook
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