The UN is engaged in Chad protecting civilians and providing assistance to thousands of people uprooted by insecurity as a result of conflict in the neighbouring Central African Republic and the Sudan Darfur region. The announcement follows a visit to the agency’s Nairobi headquarters by the UN team Resident Coordinator in Chad, Mr. Kingsley Amaning.  "We have been able to identify several areas where UNDP, UNEP, Government of Chad and UN-HABITAT can collaborate for the benefit of Chadian people,"said Mr. Amaning referring to the United Nations Development Programme and the UN Environment Programme.
The UN’s MINURCAT mission has helped stabilize the eastern part of Chad making it possible for development projects to be established. The trend in Chad is that there is a major shift away from humanitarian assistance to development assistance with the government requiring help with planning and implementation. The Government of Chad has shown interest on issues to do with environment degradation, urbanization, and sustainable energy to rural households and access to adequate shelter. UN-HABITAT said it could help the government improve housing conditions for internally displaced people. Chad has experienced continual instability and conflict, driven by long-standing tensions between ethnic groups. The country is faced with myriad humanitarian needs and the UN agencies working in Chad must strive to develop activities that respond to the different needs of the affected populations. "We will take advantage of the UN-HABITAT mission to Chad to discuss areas of collaboration taking full advantage of the government’s interest in development programmes and on how some of these issues can be integrated both in the new and existing programmes," he said. UN-Habitat has been active in Chad since 2004 helping the government improve urban development and housing conditions, including the preparation of Urban Development Plans for N’Djamena and several secondary cities. |
