Here’s what you need to know:
The fighting and dire humanitarian conditions triggered by the conflict that broke out between rival armies in Sudan in April 2023 have so far displaced 14 million people, spreading to the country’s seven neighboring countries, according to the UN.
Few places are feeling the effects of the ongoing war as acutely as Chad, which is now the largest refugee-hosting country per capita in Africa, according to the UN refugee agency, UNHCR.
“Chad’s generous welcome to refugees is a powerful act of solidarity,” said United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Barham Salih.
But as landlocked Chad has welcomed more than 900,000 Sudanese refugees across its eastern border since the start of the conflict, 40 percent of its own population already needs humanitarian assistance.
Why is it important
Often called the “Tower of Babel of the world” due to its more than 200 ethnic groups and 100 languages, Chad’s challenges are multifaceted.
With more than 42 percent of the population living below poverty, the country is among the poorest in the world.
Chad, now hosting more than 1.5 million refugees, continues to keep its borders with Sudan open while also fighting climate and security crises.
Floods and food insecurity
The word Chad translates in a local language as “large body of water” and reflects the cultural importance of Lake Chad, after which the country is named.
As the lake continues to shrink due to climate change and other problems, the country has suffered major flooding that has devastated its food security.
In 2024 alone, floods destroyed more than 432,000 hectares of crops, equivalent to more than 600,000 football fields, affected almost two million people and exposed gaps in water and sanitation infrastructure, and cholera outbreaks were reported in July last year.
With a rapidly growing population, Chad far exceeds its resource capacity at a time when malnutrition rates are alarmingly high.
An estimated two million Chadian children aged six to 59 months are suffering or expected to suffer from acute malnutrition between October 2025 and September 2026, including almost 484,000 children expected to suffer from severe acute malnutrition, according to the global hunger monitor: the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification.
Safety pressures
The security picture is equally worrying.
Violent extremist groups, including Boko Haram and its affiliates, have continued to create insecurity in the Lake Chad Basin, displacing more than 250,000 people.
Security forces patrol in Adré, Chad.
In the north, trafficking networks and illegal coal mining overlap with gender violence and child labor exploitation.
Given that 87 percent of the total refugee population in Chad are women and children, these concerns continue to grow.
What is the UN doing?
Since April 2023, the Government of Chad and UNHCR have helped 67 percent of those fleeing war-torn Sudan relocate to newly established, expanded settlements, where refugees and host communities benefit from services provided by humanitarian teams.
UN agencies and partners continue to respond to provide humanitarian assistance, including in war-torn Chad and Sudan.
On February 19, the UN Security Council will meet to discuss the current crisis in Sudan, focusing on the need to end the fighting and alleviate suffering, particularly with regard to widespread violence against women and girls in the country.
Regarding needs, the UN emergency relief agency, OCHA, published its Humanitarian Action Plan 2026, which shows that the number of people in need in Chad decreased by 42 percent, but remains high.
The Action Plan calls for $986 million and aims to help 3.4 million people, including $540 million dedicated solely to refugees. U.N. spokesman Stéphane Dujarric said Wednesday: “We and our partners will focus our efforts on the most affected regions, including the east, Lagos Province and parts of the south.”
Radwa Abdelkarim, 37, a mother of six, fled to Chad in June 2023 after “the war took everything.”
“We lost our money, our family members and neighbors,” he said. “Some were murdered, others disappeared and are still missing.”
Already outside Sudan, Ms Abdelkarim combined her business skills with cash assistance from UNHCR to start baking and selling bread from her home in the Farchana refugee settlement, and has since opened two grocery stores, a restaurant and employs 12 other refugees.
“I support (refugee women) so that we can grow together and no one is left behind,” she said. “It is important to support our brothers and sisters to help them heal.”