Waves of Sudanese families flee expanding war, arrive in impoverished Chad

Many people in Chad already depended on humanitarian assistance even before the start of the war in Sudan.

Thousands more Sudanese people fleeing the country’s bloody war continue to arrive in neighbouring and impoverished Chad, as the humanitarian situation deteriorates on the ground in the region.

More than 4.3 million Sudanese have fled to neighbouring countries since the start of the civil war in April 2023 between the government-aligned Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), according to the latest data confirmed by the United Nations.

Sudan is experiencing the world’s worst displacement crisis, with nearly 12 million people forced to run from homes under fire and hunger.

Tens of thousands of Sudanese are believed to be waiting to enter eastern Chad, because they believe it will be safer and they will find food. However, their destination is a country where some seven million people, at least half of them children, already require humanitarian assistance.

Dozens of families continue to arrive in Tine, a border town between Sudan and Chad, daily.