Chari Baguirmi Region

Geography

Chad has a general elevation of 240 m (790 ft) in Lake Chad Depression towards Guera massif located at an elevation of 1,800 m (5,900 ft) and eastwards towards mountaineous Saharan region of 3,350 m (10,990 ft). The only rivers in the country of importance are Chari and Logone, flowing into Lake Chad. The region receives an annual rainfall of 1,200 mm (47 in) and has Savannah woodland region. There is significant amount of petroleum reserves in the southern portions of the country, having signs of economic potential. There are also significant proportion of gold for commercial exploitation in the regions.

Demographics

The main ethnico-linguistic groups are Chadian Arabs (more than 33%), Fula, Barma, Kanuri and Ngambay. As per the census of 2009, the population in the region was 621,785, 50.30 per cent females. The average size of household as of 2009 is 5.40 : it was 5.40 in rural households, while it was 5.40 in urban areas. The number of households was 115,118: it was 102,322 in rural areas and 12,796 in urban areas. The number of nomads in the region was 31,205, 8.00 per cent of the population. There were 620,126 people residing in private households. There were 267,256 above 18 years of ages: 129,272 male and 137,984 female. The sex ratio was 99.00 females for every hundred males. There were 590,580 sedentary staff, constituting 5.50 of the population. Char-Baguirmi is one of the 23 regions of Chad and has the Head Post Office of the region is located in the capital. As of 2015, internet and telephone were limited and post was the primary mode of communication.

Administration

The Chari-Baguirmi region is divided into three departments: Baguirmi (capital of Massenya), Chari (capital of Mandélia) and Loug Chari (capital of Bousso). Chad became independent in 1961 from the French Colonial Empire. On account of ensuing political instability and local civil wars, it continued as a one party democary till 1991, while other parties were also allowed. All the powers rested centrally with the President. As a part of decentralization in February 2003, the country is administratively split into regions, departments, municipalities and rural communities. The prefectures which were originally 14 in number were re-designated in 17 regions. The regions are administered by Governors appointed by the President. The Prefects, who originally held the responsibility of the 14 prefects, still retained the titles and were responsible for the administration of smaller departments in each region. The members of local assemblies are elected every six years, while the executive organs are elected every three years. As of 2016, there are totally 23 regions in Chad, which are divided based on population and administrative convenience.