Chad’s Oil Riches, Meant for Poor, Are Diverted

NDJAMENA, Chad

“It’s a long time we wait, but this is Chad,” said Abdelraman Choua, 22, a computer science major from Mongo. “We are always waiting.”

Such is reality under a World Bank-supported program that was supposed to harness this impoverished African nation’s oil wealth for the benefit of its poorest citizens. A $4.2 billion oil pipeline has generated $399 million for Chad since mid-2004, but the spending of the money has been seriously marred by mismanagement, graft and, most recently, the government’s decision that a hefty share can be used to fight a rebellion.

NY Times