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Public Health Challenges in Chad
Public Health Challenges in Chad
Chad is facing many serious public health problems. These include high rates of diseases such as malaria, HIV, tuberculosis, rotavirus diarrhea, and high numbers of mothers and babies dying during childbirth. These issues are made worse by ongoing conflict, recent pandemics, and a weak healthcare system.
The World Health Organization (WHO) is working in Chad to improve healthcare access, promote healthy lifestyles, and support better nutrition, especially for babies and young children.
Malnutrition in Chad
Malnutrition in Chad
Chad has some of the highest levels of malnutrition in the world. In the town of Borko, almost half of all child deaths are caused by malnutrition. Across the country, 40% of children suffer from stunted growth because they do not get enough healthy food. Long periods of drought have led to food shortages and loss of income for many families.
The organization ALIMA (Alliance for International Medical Action) has built a hospital in Chad. Their malnutrition ward is overwhelmed with patients, and there is an urgent need to expand treatment services to help more children.
The Burden of Diarrheal Disease
The Burden of Diarrheal Disease
Diarrheal disease is a significant health problem in many developing countries. In 2017, it caused 1.6 million deaths worldwide, including 528,000 children under age five. In Chad, the death rate from diarrheal disease is about 300 per 100,000 people, compared to just 1 per 100,000 in wealthier countries. This shows how serious and preventable the situation is.
Improvements and International Support
Improvements and International Support
Organizations like Doctors Without Borders are also working to improve healthcare in Chad. However, the country still depends heavily on foreign aid to train healthcare workers and provide medical supplies.
The United States currently spends less than 1% of its national budget on foreign aid. With increased support, the U.S. and other countries could help Chad improve its healthcare system and save lives.
Cholera and Regional Risks
Cholera and Regional Risks
"Chad is facing challenges of environmental degradation, climate change and population growth, whilst already characterized by low development and high poverty."
Chad also faces other significant challenges, including environmental damage, climate change, rapid population growth, and extreme poverty.
Now, an estimated 80,000 children in West and Central Africa are at high risk of cholera as the rainy season begins. Infections can spread quickly through dirty water. Ongoing outbreaks in nearby countries like the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Nigeria could spread across borders to Chad and other nations. Several countries, including Ghana, Togo, and the Republic of Congo, are already facing cholera outbreaks. Others, such as Niger, Liberia, Benin, and Cameroon, are under close watch.
Urgent action is needed to stop the spread of cholera and protect children across the region.
"A majority of all children are working. 48.8 percent of children ages 5-14 work full time. This percentage is among the highest in African countries. When added to the percentage of children who attend both school and work, the percentage goes up to 77.2."
"Education is not accessible. Another reason there are so many instances of child labor in Chad is that quality education is inaccessible. Despite the fact that the government mandates free and compulsory education up until the age of 14, only 37.9 percent of students complete primary school. Many schools require an additional payment for school-related fees, and some families cannot afford them. Additionally, there have been teacher strikes, decreasing the number of open schools in Chad altogether. The United Nations Development Assistance Framework (UNDAF) has been attempting to improve the access and quality of education in Chad since 2017, and future data will show how the program is going to affect school-age working children in Chad."
"Human trafficking worsens child labor. As a result of trafficking, children are sold and forced to work away from their families, sometimes even begging in the streets for money. One of the worst instances of child labor and trafficking occurs when boys called mahadjirine travel to Koranic schools to get an education, but they are forced to work and return all of their profits to their fraudulent teachers. The Chadian government criminalizes labor trafficking and began a procedure to identify and prosecute offenders, but its success only lasted briefly. The number of arrests and convictions for labor traffickers decreased and then remained stagnant only two years after the initial implementation."
Nearly half of children ages 15-17 work in hazardous conditions. Despite the fact that Chad’s minimum working age is 14 years old, boys and girls ages 15-17 are counted in child labor statistics because of dangerous working conditions. 42 percent of working 15-17-year-olds deal with circumstances that can be physically and mentally harmful such as extensive work hours, working underground, working with heavy machinery and abuse.
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