The European Union and the Republic of Chad want to strengthen their partnership on counter-terrorism, regional security, refugee management and development for this African country which has been made fragile by Boko Haram currently in the grip of an economic and social crisis.
This was the resolve expressed by Chad's President Idriss Deby Itno, when he visited the EU institutions in Brussels on Tuesday 10 January, and by those he met –European Council President Donald Tusk, High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini, and European Commissioner for International Cooperation and Development Neven Mimica.
Chad's assistance in the fight against terrorism both in the Sahel and against Boko Haram is recognised by the international community. Standing alongside the regional efforts to fight this scourge, the EU is providing support, through the African Union, to the joint multinational force that is fighting this terrorist group.
Mogherini and Deby underlined their shared concern about the terrorist threat in Libya and about the continuing instability in the Sahel region. They both call for accelerated implementation of the peace process in Mali, a press release from the European External Action Service (EEAS) states.
Deby underscored that Chad is hosting a large number of refugees, who are the victims of conflicts in Sudan and the Central African Republic or who have been pushed by Boko Haram into the Lake Chad region, with heavy consequences for the humanitarian situation in Chad. Mogherini and Mimica gave their agreement for the EU to contribute more to the global response to the food crisis (food insecurity and chronic malnutrition of the people) resulting from the consequences of multiple regional crises and the effects of climate change.
In 2016, the EU committed some €400 million in aid to Chad, including direct budgetary support to its government. Mimica acknowledged the need to strengthen this direct budgetary support and confirmed that the EU was ready to accompany the country in reforms based on the government's five-year plan for reducing poverty. (Original version in French by Aminata Niang)