Chad: Desert expansion leads to brutal crackdown on Charcoal production

Hissene said he planted eucalyptus trees during the 1970s in a region
that is now bare of them. “From Ndjamena to Massaguet (80 kilometres,
50 miles away), there is nothing left. We’ve had three seasons with no
harvest,” he said.

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Sanctions that began coming into effect in December include torching
vehicles carrying charcoal and arresting people transporting the
product, law-and-order officials say. The measures have sparked an
outcry among the poorest residents of this desolate west African
country, who claim they cannot afford to buy gas to cook their daily
meals. Some experts suggest Ndjamena should have eased more slowly
into its environmental battle.

“One cannot change old habits overnight,” Brigitte Topinanty Dionadji, a government consultant, told AFP. “One must fight against desertification but there should have been awareness-raising campaigns and a transition.

Those affected are the most destitute,” she said. But Chadian authorities argue they have no time to spare. “Ndjamena and its surroundings are turning into desert. The forests must be saved,” said Communications Minister Mahamat Hissene.

Experts cite a growth in fuelwood consumption and particularly a shift to charcoal use in Africa, a trend carrying serious environmental consequences without proper management.

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