While Chad has held several presidential elections since the 1990’s, power currently is held by President Déby, and is considered to be under authoritarian rule. As a landlocked country, Chad sees high import costs for goods brought from outside of the continent. As a poverty-stricken country, Chad is ranked as the 7th poorest nation in the world.
- Country Profile
- Land Mass/Major Cities – Chad is a landlocked country in northern central Africa. The capital city of Chad is N’Djamena.
- Languages – Arabic (official language), French (official language), Sara, and over 120 different dialects and languages are used throughout the country.
- Business Activity
- Agriculture – Camels, cassava, cattle, corn, cotton, goats, millet, onions, peanuts, potatoes, rice, sesame, sheep, and sorghum.
- Industries – Brewing, natron, construction materials, cotton textiles, cigarettes, oil, and soap
- Natural Resources – Fish from Lake Chad, gold, kaolin, limestone, natron, petroleum, salt, sand and gravel, and uranium
- Exports – Cotton, gum arabic, livestock, oil, sesame, and shea butter
- Imports – Foodstuffs, industrial goods, machinery and transportation equipment, and textiles
- Major Trading Partners – Belgium, Cameroon, China, France, India, Italy, Japan, and the United States
Source: CIA. (2017). The World Factbook: Chad. CIA. Retrieved from: https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/cd.html