Factbook
Histoire de Tchad — Chronologie
Dates clés de l'histoire de Tchad, d'après le Factbook Magna et l'Encyclopédie universelle.
1897France began moving into the region in the late 1880s and defeated the Bagirmi kingdom in 1897, Rabih AZ-ZUBAYR in 1900, and the Ouddai kingdom in 1909.
1910By 1910, France had incorporated the northern arid region, the Lake Chad Basin, and southeastern Chad into French Equatorial Africa.
1910The French defeated the Sanusiyya in 1910 after years of intermittent war.
1960Chad achieved its independence in 1960 and then saw three decades of instability, oppressive rule, civil war, and a Libyan invasion.
1960Independence: 11 August 1960 (from France).
1987With the help of the French military and several African countries, Chadian leaders expelled Libyan forces during the 1987 "Toyota War," so named for the use of Toyota pickup trucks as fighting vehicles.
1990In 1990, Chadian general Idriss DEBY led a rebellion against President Hissene HABRE.
1996Under DEBY, Chad approved a constitution and held elections in 1996.
2014Languages: French (official), Arabic (official), Sara (in south), more than 120 languages and dialects Religions: Muslim 52.1%, Protestant 23.9%, Roman Catholic 20%, animist 0.3%, other Christian 0.2%, none 2.8%, unspecified 0.7% (2014-15 est.) Urban population: 24.4% of total population (2023).
2015In 2015, the government imposed a state of emergency in the Lake Chad Basin following multiple attacks by the terrorist group Boko Haram, now known as ISIS-West Africa.
2019In 2019, the Chadian government also declared a state of emergency in the Sila and Ouaddai regions bordering Sudan and in the Tibesti region bordering Niger, where rival ethnic groups are still fighting.
2021Shortly after DEBY was killed during a rebel incursion in 2021, a group of military officials -- led by DEBY’s son, Mahamat Idriss DEBY -- took control of the government.
2022A national dialogue in August-October 2022 culminated in decisions to extend the transition for up to two years, dissolve the TMC, and appoint Mahamat DEBY as Transitional President; the transitional authorities held a constitutional referendum in December 2023 and claimed 86 percent of votes were in favor of the new constitution.
2022The military officials dismissed the National Assembly, suspended the Constitution, and formed a Transitional Military Council (TMC), while pledging to hold democratic elections by October 2022.
2023Generation mix — fossil fuels: 94.3% of total installed capacity (2023 est.); solar: 0.8% of total installed capacity (2023 est.); wind: 2.3% of total installed capacity (2023 est.) Energy use: 1.502 million Btu/person (2023 est.).
2023Industries: oil, cotton textiles, brewing, natron (sodium carbonate), soap, cigarettes, construction materials Agriculture: sorghum, groundnuts, millet, beef, cereals, yams, sugarcane, maize, cassava, milk (2023) Electricity access: 11.7% (2022 est.).
2023Major urban areas: 1.592 million N'DJAMENA (capital) (2023) oil-dependent economy challenged by market fluctuations, regional instability, refugee influx, and climate vulnerability; high levels of extreme poverty and food insecurity; recent growth driven by oil and agricultural recovery; debt-restructuring agreement under G20 Common Framework Inflation: 8.9% (2024 est.).
2024Military spending: 3% of GDP (2024 est.).
2024The transitional authorities have announced plans to hold elections by October 2024.
2025Population: 19.7 million (2025 estimate).
