Quick Facts

Demography

Population 10.1 million

Languages: French (official), Arabic (official), Sara (in the south), 120 different languages and dialects

Religions: Muslim 53.1%, Catholic 20.1%, Protestant 14.2%, animist 7.3%, other 0.5%, unknown, 1.7%, atheist 3.1 %

Ethnic groups (three largest): Sara 27.7%, Arab 12.3%, Mayo-Kebbi 11.5%

Life expectancy: 47.43 years

Median age: 16.4 years

Population Growth Rate: 2.1%

Literacy (age 15+ can read and write): 25.7%

Geography

Capital: N’Djamena

Area: 1.28 million sq. km; slightly more than three times the size of California

Natural resources: petroleum, uranium, natron, kaolin, fish, gold, limestone, sand and gravel, salt

Economy

GDP (purchasing power partity): $15.26 billion

Currency: Communaute Financiere Africaine Franc

Population below the Poverty line: 80%

Government and Political

Date of Independence: August 11, 1960 (from France)

Type of government: republic

Displacement

Refugees (country of origin): Sudan 234,000, Central African Republic 54,200

IDPs: 178,918

According to Worldmapper.org Chad ranked 8th in the world for Human Poverty

© Copyright 2006 SASI Group (University of Sheffield) and Mark Newman (University of Michigan).