{"id":3447,"date":"2018-10-15T19:31:02","date_gmt":"2018-10-15T19:31:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.svenlucaworld.com\/?p=3447"},"modified":"2019-08-17T13:55:16","modified_gmt":"2019-08-17T13:55:16","slug":"reisebericht-tschad","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.svenlucaworld.com\/en\/travel-report-chad\/","title":{"rendered":"Travel report CHAD - Visiting the nomads in the dusty Sahara desert"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Visa and entry requirements Chad:<\/strong>
\nPassport required
\nGerman citizens need a valid entry visa to enter Chad, which must be applied for at the Chadian embassy in Berlin.
\nVisa costs: 100 euros<\/p>\n

Information from the Foreign Office about your trip to Chad:<\/strong>
\nhttps:\/\/www.auswaertiges-amt.de\/de\/tschadsicherheit\/225774<\/a><\/p>\n

The Republic of Chad is a landlocked country in Central Africa with around 14 million inhabitants. The country borders Libya to the north, Sudan to the east, the Central African Republic to the south, Cameroon to the southwest and Nigeria and Niger to the west. The two official languages of the state are French and Arabic and the national currency is the CFA franc BEAC, where 1 euro corresponds to around 655 XAF.<\/p>\n

The country's largest cities include N'Djamena, Moundou, Sarh, Abeche, Kelo, Am Timan, Doba, Bongor and Pala. About 65% of the residents profess the Muslim faith.<\/p>\n

In the north of Chad is the Sahara desert - it takes up half of the country's area, in the east the dry savannahs of the Sahel extend to Sudan, in the west there is Lake Chad, in the interior there are the thorn bush savannahs and the dry forests in the south of the country. The highest elevation in the national territory is the volcanic Tibesti mountains with the 3,415 meter high Emi Koussi in the northern part of the country.<\/p>\n

Chad is home to abundant mammal populations such as elephants, lions, cheetahs, giraffes, antelopes, manatees, rhinos, as well as turtles, crocodiles, Nile monitors, steppe monitors and pythons.<\/p>\n

Chad is one of the poorest and most underdeveloped countries in the world and ranks third from bottom of all countries in the world in the Human Development Index. The country has one of the highest infant and child mortality rates anywhere, with almost 80% of the population living in absolute poverty.<\/p>\n

Along with Sierra Leone and Somalia, Chad is one of the only three countries in the world where the majority of the entire national economy still comes from agriculture. About 88% of the working population is employed in agriculture. The products grown such as grain, vegetables, rice, peanuts and tobacco are not even enough for self-sufficiency. The state's two main exports are cotton and petroleum, which have only been produced for 15 years.<\/p>\n

Due to the desert spreading southwards and the resulting higher crop failures, Chad is heavily dependent on international aid. However, due to widespread corruption, significant parts of the investment funds are being lost.<\/p>\n

The capital and largest city in Chad is N'Djamena with around 1.4 million inhabitants. N'Djamena is located at the confluence of the Shari and Logone rivers.<\/p>\n

The few sights in the capital include the old town, the bridge to Kousseri, the National Museum, the Grand Mosque N'Djamena, the Avenue Charles de Gaulle, the N'Djamena Cathedral and the new airport.<\/p>\n

In August 2017 I traveled to Chad for two days during my Central Africa trip. Although the embassy in Berlin refused to grant me my Chad visa due to the lack of an invitation, I still flew there on the flight I had already booked. Actually, they weren't supposed to issue me a boarding pass in Cameroon, but with a few tricks I managed to get through all the other passport and visa controls later on.<\/p>\n

When I finally arrived in N'Djamena, I was of course first taken into custody, after all I was only the second tourist in the last ten years to successfully enter the country without a visa. But after the security service took my passport, all the employees were actually very surprised and quite friendly to me. First I told everyone my story about the visa not being issued in Berlin, then Felix from ASKY Airlines took special care of me. At the end of the two-hour discussions, he got me a day visa, a hotel and a driver who even picked me up from the airport.<\/p>\n

The relatively few hours I was able to spend overnight in the capital and the country still surprised me. On the 20-minute drive to the hotel everything was very clean and quite modern; there was no sign of such great poverty at all. Many things, including my hotel, were firmly in Chinese hands, the room was mediocre, the food and beer were good and the internet was excellent.<\/p>\n

The next morning the hotel driver took me back to the airport. There I met Felix again to collect my passport from the airport manager, who was sleeping in his airport office. Still unwashed, in his underpants and with his upper body bare, he wished me a pleasant journey.<\/p>\n

In the end I had an eventful stay in N'Djamena and met a lot of nice people. A special thank you again goes to Felix from ASKY Airlines for all his efforts and to the super friendly airport security chief.<\/p>\n\n