Chad has acknowledged the harm caused by the use of explosive weapons in populated areas (EWIPA) and has participated in the process toward a political declaration on EWIPA use.

Statements

As a member of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, Chad aligned with World Humanitarian Summit Core Commitments to ‘Uphold the Norms that Safeguard Humanity’ in May 2016, including the commitment “to promote and enhance the protection of civilians and civilian objects, especially in the conduct of hostilities, for instance by working to prevent civilian harm resulting from the use of wide-area explosive weapons in populated areas, and by sparing civilian infrastructure from military use in the conduct of military operations.”[1]

Political declaration

Chad has not made public individual statements condemning EWIPA use; however, it has participated in the political negotiations toward a political declaration on the use of EWIPA. In 2020, Chad spoke at the consultations for a political declaration, commenting on a draft of key elements for the declaration prepared by Ireland. Chad’s statement drew attention to the importance of considering non-state actors in the political declaration, especially given African experiences with proliferating terrorist groups.[2]

[1] Agenda for Humanity. ‘Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC)’. https://agendaforhumanity.org/stakeholder/233.html.

[2] Permanent Mission of Chad to the United Nations (2020). ‘Declaration du Tschad a l’occasion des consultations EWIPA’. https://reachingcriticalwill.org/images/documents/Disarmament-fora/ewipa/declaration/statements/10Feb_Chad.pdf.