More than 34,000 Sudanese refugees arrive in Chad: UNHCR

28 August 2024 (Andre) – The United Nations says more than 634,000 people from more than 178,000 households in Sudan have arrived in Chad since the conflict broke out in mid-April last year, putting enormous pressure on the host country.

According to the UNHCR, these governorates include Quaddai (447,617 refugees), Sila (93,841 refugees), Wadi Fira (85,674 refugees) and Ennedi-Est (7,046 refugees).

So far, more than 580,000 refugees from 164,209 families have been registered. They are categorized as women at risk, single parents, elderly at risk, children at risk, elderly at risk, disabled people, etc.

At least 89 percent of Chadian refugees are women and children, of whom women make up 26 percent, many of whom lack basic health care for their families.

The Chadian government has estimated that the number of refugees and returnees in Chad could reach 910,000 by the end of 2024 due to the ongoing conflict in Sudan and the influx of new refugees and returnees.

More than 10 million people have been forced to flee their homes since fighting broke out in mid-April last year, the largest displacement in the world. While most remain in Sudan, about 2 million have crossed into neighboring countries.

Hundreds of Sudanese refugees continue to flee to Chad every day, while dozens of existing overcrowded refugee camps and sprawling settlements in eastern Chad are reportedly facing shortages of food and health care.

Meanwhile, Chadian authorities, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and the United Nations migration agency have noted a large influx of forced refugees, including Sudanese refugees and Chadian returnees, who have spontaneously arrived in Chad through more than 32 border entry points in the eastern Chadian provinces of Ouaddai, Sila, Wadi Fira and Ennedi East.

Humanitarian workers are supporting the Government of Chad and local authorities to provide life-saving assistance and a range of protection services in spontaneous locations, extensions of old settlements and new ones.

The Government of Chad and UNHCR have so far resettled 49 per cent of refugees from spontaneous arrival sites to expanded and newly built settlements, where refugees and host communities benefit from services provided by humanitarian teams.

(English stone)