🌊 Chad's capital weathered record water levels without major damage

🌊 Chad's capital weathered record water levels without major damage

N'Djamena sits where the Chari and Logone rivers meet, leaving it highly exposed to flooding. During the 2024 rainy season the city protected 1.5 million residents even as rivers hit record levels, after clearing 217 miles of drainage and deploying 12 mobile pumps.

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  • Chad's capital N'Djamena sits where the Chari and Logone rivers meet, which makes the city highly exposed to flooding.
  • N'Djamena protected 1.5 million residents during the 2024 rainy season, even as the rivers reached record levels.
  • The city cleared and repaired 217 miles of drainage channels and deployed 12 high-capacity mobile pumps.

Preparation instead of crisis response

Chad's capital N'Djamena sits where the Chari and Logone rivers meet, which makes the city highly exposed to flooding. After the severe floods of 2022, a $13 million program was launched in early 2024 to prepare the city for a high-risk rainy season. The program is called PILIER and was supported by the World Bank.

In 2024, Chad was hit by the deadliest floods in the country in decades. 576 people died and 1.9 million were affected. N'Djamena still came through largely without damage.

Drainage, pumps, and trained teams

The city's 217-mile drainage system was cleared and repaired to improve water flow. The work was tracked with digital mapping and performance-based contracts, and safe disposal of sludge from the channels became a requirement.

Twelve high-capacity mobile pumps were purchased from abroad and positioned across the city. About 30 municipal technicians were trained so they can run the pumps themselves and carry out regular drills.

Support directly to households

Neighborhood groups received easy-to-use maps and support from local organizations. Emergency supplies were positioned in advance for families at risk of having to leave their homes. In total, 9,858 households received this support, equal to more than 60,000 people.

Jobs and continued funding

The program created more than 800 jobs in 2024, with similar numbers expected each year going forward. It also strengthened local administration and municipal services.

Following the results, Chad's finance minister allocated an additional $50 million in IDA financing to PILIER, to rebuild bridges across the country. A market vendor in the city says customers kept coming to the market despite the heavy rains, unlike previous years when sales used to drop at this time of year.

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