Chad

In Chad, the large backlog of women with untreated fistula far outpaces the country’s treatment capacity, and the country’s healthcare facilities remain under-equipped.

Why We Work in Chad

Although Chad joined the ranks of Africa’s oil-producing countries in 2013, little of its oil wealth has gone to improve the country’s economic and social outlook—especially for women and girls. Today, only 39% of births are attended by a skilled medical professional. Female literacy rates hover at 14%.

According to UNICEF, 68% of Chadian girls are married before the age of 18. With only 4.8% of women using contraception, many young women soon become pregnant after marriage—when their bodies may not be ready to handle a complicated labor. This—combined with poor access to maternal health care and emergency obstetric services—puts them at huge risk of developing obstetric fistula in childbirth. 

An enormous backlog of untreated patients exists that far outpaces the country’s treatment capacity. Many of Chad’s healthcare facilities are underequipped, with poorly trained staff.  Undoubtedly, this contributes to the number of women who require a second— and sometimes a third or fourth— attempt at fistula repair  surgery.

What You Help Us Do

We are investing in the following areas to build Chad’s in-country medical services and provide life-transforming surgery to as many women as possible:

Cost of Fistula Surgeries
Surgeon Training
Community Outreach
Reintegration Support

Meet Our Partners

We identify local surgical teams in Chad already successfully treating women with fistula—and then work to amplify their efforts. 

Who are our current partners?

Artemedis

  • Location: Abeche and N’Djamena
  • Partner Since: 2019
Who are our past partners?

Women and Health Alliance International (WAHA International)

  • Location: N’Djamena and Abeche
  • Partner In: 2011 – 2018
How much funding have we granted?

Below are funding totals since the start of each partnership.

Current Partners

  • Artemedis: $1,002,742

Past Partners

  • Women and Health Alliance International (WAHA International): $1,322,600

 

 

News from the Field

Your Donations at Work: Chad  •  February 15, 2017
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Your donations have supported fistula treatment in Chad since 2011, through the work of our partner Women and Health Alliance International (WAHA). Over the last two years, WAHA reports that...
Your donations have supported fistula treatment in Chad since 2011, through the work of our partner Women and Health Alliance International (WAHA). Over the last two years, WAHA reports that they were able to provide life-changing surgery to 310 women—many of whom (40 percent) were suffering from complex injuries requiring an advanced level of surgical skill.
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Meet Khadijah from Chad  •  August 05, 2015
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For Khadijah and her family, it was normal to give birth at home without skilled medical assistance. After three days of labor pains, however, she was taken to a maternity...
For Khadijah and her family, it was normal to give birth at home without skilled medical assistance. After three days of labor pains, however, she was taken to a maternity center in Moussoro where she gave birth to a stillborn baby. It was at this point that Khadijah started experiencing incontinence, a symptom of fistula. From that day, her life changed completely: only a year after a difficult delivery and the loss of her child, she found herself alone, abandoned by her husband.
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Meet Nura From Chad  •  January 30, 2015
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Nura comes from Lai, a region in the south of Chad where she married at age 17. She first became pregnant at 20 and tried to give birth at home,...
Nura comes from Lai, a region in the south of Chad where she married at age 17. She first became pregnant at 20 and tried to give birth at home, aided only by her family. After 4 days of complicated labor, she was finally taken to the maternity center in Guidari, a nearby village. Doctors at Guidari performed a C-section and Nura gave birth to a stillborn baby boy. Soon thereafter, she began leaking urine. Nura did not know where she could be healed.
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