Chad joined the Global TNA Phase III and completed its TNA in 2023. Priority adaptation sectors were agriculture & livestock and water. Priority mitigation sectors were energy and forestry.
More than half of Chad’s territory is desert, and over the last few decades, the Saharan and Sahelian climatic zones have encroached on Chad’s territory by some 150 km to the south.
Chad faces some of the most severe climate change challenges in Africa, with rising temperatures, desertification, and water scarcity threatening livelihoods. The shrinking of Lake Chad—once a vital water source for millions—has devastated agriculture, fishing, and pastoralism, leading to food insecurity and displacement. Irregular rainfall and prolonged droughts reduce crop yields and worsen competition over limited resources, sometimes fueling conflict.
Soil degradation and deforestation further weaken ecosystems, while flash floods periodically damage infrastructure and homes. These compounding effects make Chad highly vulnerable, underscoring the urgent need for sustainable water management, reforestation, and climate adaptation strategies to protect communities.
Lake Chad has shrunk from an area of 25,000 km² in 1960 to only 2,500 km² today. Chad’s main economic activities remain those associated with the primary sector such as agriculture, animal husbandry and subsistence fishing.
The climate shifts underway have significantly reduced agricultural, pastoral and fishery production, contributing to the disappearance of some plant and animal species, and causing mass displacements of pastoralists and farmers forced to relocate to more suitable areas for their livelihoods.
Chad’s TNA resulted in Technology Action Plans (TAPs) in seed storage; water pumping; integrated pest management; rehabilitation of surface water reservoirs for climate change adaptation and solar PV, solar pumping, and agro-forestry in mitigation.
Chad’s TNA contributes to the following Sustainable Development Goals:
Share this
Photo credit: Axel Fassioa, CIFOR / Flickr.
