CEDAW Concluding Observations: Chad 2025
Published: 7/Jul/2025
Source: Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women
Concluding observations on the fifth periodic report of Chad
CEDAW/C/TCD/CO/5
Extracts:
Nationality
31. The Committee notes that the 2023 Constitution of Chad recognizes the equal right of women and men to confer their nationality to their children. However, it notes with concern that despite the State Party’s efforts to deploy mobile civil registration units, birth registration civil registration rates remain low, in particular among rural women, IDP, refugee, asylum-seeking and migrant women, women from nomadic communities, due to administrative and infrastructural barriers, limited of awareness, poverty, especially in rural, remote and conflict-affected areas, restricting women’s legal capacity and their access to education, health services, shelters and other basic services.
32. With reference to its general recommendation No. 32 (2014) on the gender-related dimensions of refugee status, asylum, nationality and statelessness of women, the Committee recommends that the State Party strengthen its efforts to facilitate access to civil registration services for women, in particular rural women, migrant, refugee, asylum-seeking and IDPs women, women from nomadic communities, through the use of modern information and communications technology, simplify and ensure affordable birth registration procedures and deploy more mobile teams to issue birth certificates in rural, remote and conflict affected areas.
[…]
Asylum-seeking, refugee, stateless and internally displaced women and girls
47. The Committee notes the large population of internally displaced, asylum-seeking, refugee and stateless women and girls in the State Party, with 1.8 million of displaced or stateless persons and 1.2 million persons registered as refugees in 2024. It commends the State Party for the adoption of the Law on asylum (2020) which grants equal rights to education, healthcare and social protection to refugees as to Chadian citizens and provides for the recognition of the refugee identity card as a residence permit. However, it is concerned that in practice, internally displaced, asylum-seeking, refugee and stateless women and girls have limited access to basic services and face intersecting forms of discrimination and gender-based violence in the State Party.
48. Recalling its general recommendation No. 32 (2014) on the gender-related dimensions of refugee status, asylum, nationality and statelessness of women, the Committee recommends that the State Party address intersecting forms of discrimination against IDP, asylum-seeking, refugee and stateless women and girls and:
(a) Strengthen its legal framework for the protection of IDP women and girls and develop programmes to improve the conditions and ensure food security and safety in IDP camps, in line with the African Union Convention for the Protection and Assistance of Internally Displaced Persons in Africa;
(b) Enhance efforts, in collaboration with United Nations entities, such as UNHCR, and civil society organizations, to address gender-based violence against refugee and asylum-seeking women and girls in refugee reception areas, including by strengthening the implementation of the national legislation and policies and reinforcing accountability mechanisms.