General
Information
|
Total Land Area: |
1,259,200 km2 |
|
Land boundaries: |
5,968 km |
|
Coastline: |
0 km
(Landlocked) |
|
Capital: |
N’Djamena |
|
Other Large
Cities: |
Moundou, Sarh,
Abéché |
|
Official
Language: |
French and
Arabic |
|
National
Currency Unit: |
Communauté
Financière
Africaine Franc
(XAF) |
|
National Day: |
August 11 |
Location and
Geography
Chad is the largest
country of former
French Equatorial
Africa. It is a
landlocked country
with one of the
world’s lowest
population
densities. It is
situated in the
heart of Africa and
has borders with
Cameroon in the
South-west, Niger
and Nigeria in the
West, the Central
African Republic in
the South, Libya in
the North and Sudan
in the East. Chad’s
topography is
generally flat
except for a range
of hills along the
Eastern border and
relatively high,
barren mountains in
the far North-west.
Most of the
country’s drainage
system flows into
Lake Chad which
lacks an outlet. The
climate is hot and
arid in the Northern
desert regions, and
wet and tropical in
the South.
Demography
|
Population:
|
8.44 million
(2002) |
|
Crude Birth
Rate:
|
45 per thousand
people (2002) |
|
Crude Death
Rate:
|
16 per thousand
people (2002) |
|
Infant Mortality
Rate:
|
117 per thousand
(2002) |
|
Life Expectancy:
|
Male: 47 years,
Female: 50 years
(2002) |
|
Urban
Population:
|
24.0 percent
(2002) |
|
Adult Literacy:
|
44.20 percent
(2001) |
Economy
The economy of Chad
is dominated by
agriculture which
creates employment
and generates most
of the export
revenues. Cotton and
groundnuts are the
two major crops.
Other important
crops are sorghum,
millet, dry beans,
sesame, potatoes,
and rice. The
industrial sector is
small and its
industrial
production is
limited and based on
food processing,
textiles, brewing
and leather. There
are significant
reserves of uranium
in the Aozou strip
located in the
extreme Northern
desert area.
However, the only
minerals extracted
are soda and rock
salt.
|
GDP at Current
Market Prices:
|
2013 million US$
(2002) |
|
Per Capita GDP:
|
238 US$ (2002) |
|
Share of Sectors
in GDP:
|
38.0%
Agriculture,
17.0% Industry,
45.0% Services,
(2002) |
|
Total Exports:
|
66 million US$
(2002) |
|
Total Imports:
|
451 million US$
(2002) |
|
Major Exports
Items: |
Cotton,
livestock, meat,
hides, skin and
textiles |
|
Major Imports
Items: |
Machinery and
transportation
equipment,
industrial goods
and petroleum
products |
|
Major Trading
Partners: |
US, France,
Portugal and
Germany |
|
