Chadians Struggle Despite Oil Wealth

Three years ago, Chad joined a handful of African nations as an oil exporter. Today, it exports around 170,000 barrels a day and has, so far, received around $400 million in oil revenues.

The World Bank estimates that the new income will boost Chad’s annual budget by 40 to 50 percent during the next 25 years.

But since production began, the population has grown even poorer. In 2002, Chad ranked eighth to last on the U.N human-development index. Today, it is among the bottom five.

Voice of America