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| Chad | |
 Flag of Chad | |
| Population (in Mil.) | 10.5 |
 Sex Ratio (m/f)
| 0,92 |
 Life Expectancy Ratio (f/m)
| 1.05 |
 Fertility Rate
| 6.2 |
 Income Ratio (f/m)
| 0.7 |
 Literacy Ratio (f/m)
| 0,31 |
 Tertiary Enrolment Ratio (f/m)
| 0,14 |
 Women in Parliament (in %)
| 6,5 |
| SIGI Rank | 97 |
| More information on variables | |
| Did you know that Chad ranks number 97 of 102 countries on the OECD Social Institutions and Gender Index? To learn more, see the official country note "Gender Equality and Social Institutions in Chad" at genderindex.org: | |
Contents |
Social Institutions
The population in Chad is characterized by a distinct split between ethnic groups who inhabit the north and those in south, a fact that has repercussions for gender issues. The north is home to the Arab, Peul and Hausa ethnic groups, who are Muslims and often livestock farmers; collectively, they represent half of the population. In the south, the dominant groups include Animists, who make up 39% of the population, and Christians, who make up 11%. The country’s largest ethnic group is the Saras, who live off agriculture.
Family Code
The Family Code of Chad grants almost no rights to women. Many marriages are arranged when girls are just 11 or 12 years old, and sometimes involve the payment of a dowry. Despite a law that prohibits sexual relationships with girls under the age of 14 years, even if they are married, the incidence of early marriage is extremely high. A 2004 United Nations report estimated that 49% of girls between 15 and 19 years of age were married, divorced or widowed. The high incidence of marriage before the age of 16 years contributes to the very low level of girls’ enrolment in secondary school.
Polygamy is common in Chad: it is practised throughout the country and affects more than one-third of married women.
According to tradition, only men can be heads of families and exercise authority. Sharing parental authority for the children is always highly unfavourable to the mother. In the event of divorce, mothers can maintain custody only until children reach the age of five or six years.
Women in Chad face numerous discriminations in the matter of inheritance rights.
Physical Integrity
The physical integrity of women in Chad is very poorly protected. There is legislation prohibiting violence against women, but there are no specific provisions to protect women. Domestic violence remains common, but victims rarely initiate legal proceedings; families and the traditional authorities try to settle such cases themselves.
Female genital mutilation (FGM) has been prohibited in Chad since 2002 and the government has embarked on a campaign to eradiate the practice. About half of Chadian women have been subjected to FGM: sometimes only a single, symbolic cut is made but about one-third of women have been subjected to more severe forms. The prevalence of FGM varies widely depending on ethnic group, region, religion, education and standard of living. To date, it does not appear that the 2002 legislation is having much effect: statistics for FGM remain stable and the percentages of those subjected to the practice are similar across all age groups. There is, however, a decrease in the number of mothers who have subjected their daughters to FGM, or intend to do so. Thus, the 2002 legislation and educational efforts may yet have a positive impact.
Chad does not appear to be a country of concern in relation to missing women.
Civil Liberties
In general, women in Chad have few civil liberties. In principle, women have freedom of movement, but in some regions they must be accompanied by a man even for everyday tasks such as shopping. If a woman’s husband is away, she will ask one of her sons to accompany her. Freedom of dress exists for women in the south, but nearly all women in northern Chad are obliged to wear the veil.
Ownership Rights
Women in Chad have virtually no ownership rights. Access to land is very difficult for women as tradition reserves this right for men. In fact, Chadian men rarely grant women the right to own even a small plot of land. In general, Chadian women have very little access to property other than land.
In Chad, women’s access to bank loans is severely limited by the need to obtain their husbands’ consent even to open a bank account.
Sources
- AFROL, Gender profile: Chad, www.afrol;com.
- Lang, J. (1998), Enquête sur la situation des femmes dans le monde, Rapport d’information no 733, Assemblée Nationale.
- Ouagadjio, B. et al (2004), Enquête Démographique et de Santé Tchad 2004. Calverton, Maryland, U.S.A. : INSEED et ORC Macro.
Africa for Women's Rights Campaign
Key Facts:
Women’s rights protection instruments ratified by Chad: 
- CEDAW: ratified in 1995
- CEDAW Protocol: not signed
- Maputo Protocol: signed in 2004, not ratified
The Campaign
On 8 March 2009 the "Africa for Women's Rights" Campaign was launched at the initiative of the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), in collaboration with fove non-governmental regional organisations: the African Center for Democracy and Human Rights Studies(ACDHRS), Femmes Africa Solidarité (FAS), Women’s Aid Collective (WACOL), Women in Law and Development in Africa (WILDAF) and Women and Law in Southern Africa (WLSA). These organisations make up the Steering Committee responsible for the coordination of the Campaign.
The Campaign aims to put an end to discrimination and violence against women in Africa, calling on states to ratify international and regional instruments protecting women's rights, to repeal all discriminatory laws, to adopt laws protecting the rights of women and to take all necessary measures to wensure their effective implementation.
Country Focus: Chad
Although Chad ratified the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) in 1995 it has not ratified either the Optional Protocol to CEDAW or the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa (Maputo Protocol).
The Coalition of the Campaign is particularly concerned by: the persistence of discriminatory legislation; discrimination within the family; violence against women ; violations of women’s inheritance rights; and limited access of women to education, employment, decision-making positions, health and justice.
Sources
- Focal Points: LTDH, ATPDH
- Universal Periodic Review, Chad, July 2009
- UNICEF, www.unicef.org
- AWID, Association for Women’s Rights and Development, www.awid.org
The Women, Business and the Law
Where are laws equal for men and women? 
The Women, Business and the Law report presents indicators based on laws and regulations affecting women's prospects as entrepreneurs and employees. Several of these indicators draw on the Gender Law Library, a collection of over 2,000 legal provisions impacting women's economic status. This report does not seek to judge or rank countries, but to provide information to inform discussions about women’s economic rights. Covering 128 economies, Women, Business and the Law provides data covering 6 areas: accessing institutions,using property, getting a job, dealing with taxes, building credit, and going to court.Read more about the methodology.
For detailed information on Chad, please visit the Women, Business and
the Law Chad page.
