N’Djamena, Chad – August 13, 2025 — Humanitarian organizations in eastern Chad are struggling to support more than one million refugees and returnees living in dire conditions in camps and informal settlements. Many organizations have been forced to close or dramatically reduce their operations in the refugee camps due to funding cuts.
Since April 2023, more than 870,000 Sudanese refugees and 300,000 Chadians have fled violence and famine in Sudan and sought refuge in Chad. In recent months, the ongoing siege of El Fasher in Darfur has forced more than 80,000 people to cross into eastern Chad. More than eight in 10 of the Sudanese refugee population are women and children.
Refugees and returnees face shortages of food, shelter, clean water and medicine. Many of those fleeing what has become known as a War on Women in Sudan are survivors of sexual violence and urgently need protection and other services that are no longer available due to cuts.
Fatimé, a local women’s leader, arrived at Abouteingué Camp in Chad in June of 2023. She fled Geneina, West Darfur, earlier that month.
“The mercenaries burned our house and killed my father and two of my brothers. I fled without knowing where to go – I just followed the crowd, trying to stay alive,” she said of the circumstances that drove her from her home, and her escape to safety. “After ten days of walking, we reached the Chadian border. But along the way, some people were robbed and beaten by the same mercenaries.”
Speaking about the situation in the camp today, she added: “There are many women here, but that doesn’t protect us from violence and danger. The living conditions are very difficult: few shelters, not enough water, and children who are hungry.”
Prior to April 2023, when the Sudan conflict started, more than 6.9 million people living in Chad were in need of humanitarian assistance. Today, that need has only increased. The country ranks 125 out of 127 on the World Hunger Index, with high food prices, disrupted trade, and climate impacts worsening hunger. In eastern Chad alone, more than 746,000 people are experiencing severe food insecurity.
“Since the beginning of the year, humanitarian needs in Chad have risen sharply, due to the increasing number of refugees, coupled with a significant reduction in global funding. And with the rainy season now here, access to many areas is becoming more and more difficult, complicating the delivery of assistance,” said Noël Allarabei, Interim Country Director for CARE in Chad. “There is also an increased risk of cholera – especially as parts of neighboring Sudan are reporting cases – as well as other health threats.”
Allarabei added that the first case of cholera was found on July 13 in the Dougui refugee camp in the Ouaddaï Region. At least 422 suspected cholera cases have so far been identified in eastern Chad resulting in at least 25 deaths. Cholera epidemics can be contained by increasing access to clean water, promoting hygiene and sanitation practices, and through treatment.
Eastern Chad is in the middle of its rainy season, where heavy rains make the delivery of life-saving supplies by road nearly impossible in some areas. Unfortunately, due to funding cuts, humanitarian flights to reach cut-off areas have been sharply reduced, leaving many without support.
“Rains are blocking roads in parts of Salamat, Sila, Wadi Fira, Ouaddaï, and Ennedi Est, making the transport of the few humanitarian resources available – like staff, food, medicine, and other urgent supplies – more difficult,” said Allarabei. These seasonal rains also increase the risk of cholera and other waterborne diseases in camps and host communities.
Sharp global funding cuts this year and a steady decline in official development assistance over the years are impacting all humanitarian crises, and Chad is among those badly affected. To date, a mere 17% of the 2025 Humanitarian Response Plan for Chad is funded. This impacts both local and international organizations directly and indirectly, at a time of significant need. Aid cuts have also hindered cholera mitigation efforts.
“At CARE, we work with a wide network of local and global organizations, often partnering together on specific projects,” said Allarabei. “So, when one organization is forced to scale back or shut down services entirely, the effects on us all are immediate. The entire humanitarian ecosystem here has been weakened – and the consequences for refugees and host communities have been acute.” CARE Chad has been forced to cut staff, while local and women-led organizations face existential threats from the funding crisis.
Note to editors:
Working alongside partners, CARE has assisted nearly 26,000 people, including almost 20,000 women and children, in eastern Chad between April 2023 and June 2025. Services provided include: health, clean water and new latrines, food security, shelter, nutrition, sexual and reproductive health, protection, and support for victims of sexual violence.
For media inquiries, please email usa.media@care.org,