Subchapters:
- Business Relationships
- Foreign direct investment
- FTAs and Treaties
- Development Cooperation
- Prospective fields of study (MOP)
Business relations
Trade relations with the EU
The EU is the most important funder of humanitarian and development aid in Chad, and is also one of the most important business partners of Chad.
- Allcountrylist: Overview of major industries in Chad, including mining, construction, transportation, tourism, and foreign trade.
In 2020, EU countries imported EUR 214 million worth of goods to Chad. In 2020, we see a decrease in exports from the EU – EU countries imported goods worth EUR 177 million to Chad, which was apparently marked by the worsening security situation in the country.
| 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | |
| Exports from the EU (million EUR) | 160.2 | 180.3 | 184.9 | 213.8 | 177 |
| Imports into the EU (million EUR) | ON | ON | ON | ON | ON |
| Balance with the EU (million EUR) | 40.2 | 208.1 | -46.1 | 318.3 | 1025.2 |
Source: European Commission
Trade relations with the Czech Republic
There is interest in Chad in trade and economic cooperation with the Czech Republic. However, this is largely caused not by the current economic and international position of the Czech Republic, but rather benefits from the past position of Czechoslovakia. The main obstacle to wider mutual economic and business cooperation can be identified as the lack of interest of Czech companies, low knowledge of French and poor insurability of export loans.
In 2021, the main export commodities were gas turbines, used clothing and processing units. Mainly raw paper and sesame seeds were imported. The passive balance documents long-term greater exports than imports, in contrast to the EU, where Chad exports more.
| 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | |
| Exports from the Czech Republic (billion CZK) | 0 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.03 |
| Imports to the Czech Republic (billion CZK) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Balance with the Czech Republic (billion CZK) | 0 | -0.1 | -0.1 | -0.1 | -0.07 |
Source: CZSO
Trade relations with countries outside the EU
The main import partners are: Cameroon, France, China and Finland. The main export partner is the United States of America (80 percent of exports), followed by China (7 percent) and France (6 percent).
| 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | |
| Exports from countries outside the EU (million EUR) | 2 103.4 | 3,010.6 | 3 106.3 | 2,061.7 | 2,857.5 |
| Imports to countries outside the EU (million EUR) | ON | ON | ON | ON | ON |
| Balance with non-EU countries (million EUR) | ON | ON | ON | ON | ON |
Source: EIU, Eurostat
Foreign direct investment
In 2020, the net inflow of foreign direct investment to Chad was 557 million US dollars. Although net foreign direct investment inflows to Chad have fluctuated widely in recent years, they have tended to increase over the period 1971–2020, amounting to US$557 million in 2020.
Most foreign direct investment goes into oil exploration and infrastructure development. The services sector has also recently attracted foreign investment, mainly through the telecommunications and banking sectors. The country’s main investors are Nigeria, France, the United Kingdom and South Korea.
There are no FDIs of the Czech Republic in the country yet.
FTAs and treaties
Treaties with the EU
Post-Cotonou Partnership Agreement – signed in April 2021 as a continuation of the agreement between the EU and African countries. It regulates, among other things, economic relations and development issues.
Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs): The trade regime between the EU and the ACP countries provides these countries with unilateral preferences, i.e. the countries have better, more favorable conditions. This regime is not formally in line with the globally recognized rules of the “World Trade Organization” (WTO), and when the Cotonou Agreement was signed, the other WTO countries not affected by the Agreement had to officially waive the WTO terms to the signatories of the Agreement. The “waiver” of the conditions was limited in time and its validity expired on 31 December 2007. Already in 2005, negotiations on Economic Partnership Agreements – so-called “Economic Partnership Agreements” (EPAs) between the EU and the ACP countries were started.
Contracts with the Czech Republic
Currently, no bilateral agreement has been concluded between the Czech Republic and Chad.
Developmental cooperation
In 2014, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic supported the project “Integrated health care for mother and child in Massakory, Hadjer Lamis region, Chad” as part of humanitarian aid to Chad, with the amount of CZK 2 million. The project was implemented by Doctors Without Borders.
The EU is the most important funder in Chad. The 11th EDF (2014-2020) was budgeted at 442 million Euros and is focused on food self-sufficiency and rural development, management of raw materials, good governance (including institutions for business development and financial management) and civil society support.
Prospective fields of study (MOP)
The Chadian market is relatively small and the purchasing power of the majority of the population is very low. The exporter should focus on the entire CEMAC area. Czech goods will face very strong French competition on the market and rapidly growing imports of cheap Chinese goods.
The priority areas (besides the extraction of raw materials) are:
– agriculture – perspective items are food products, agricultural machinery, irrigation systems and water treatment, equipment for processing products of the Chadian agricultural sector, especially cotton
– energy – the government intends to privatize the remaining state-owned companies, including the state-owned electricity distribution networks
– construction industry
– defense
– the rubber and leather industry l – the industry of processing natural gum arabic and the production of tires and the processing of animal skins is also developing very quickly – there is certainly room for Czech suppliers of the relevant technology.
– consumer industry – household goods of all kinds, costume jewelry, glass and porcelain, chemicals, fertilizers, clothing (including second-hand),
– telecommunications – telecommunications equipment,
– mining industry – oil refining equipment, mining equipment and
– mechanical industry – machinery (also refurbished), simple workshop machinery,, cars (also used), construction machinery,, generators, solar panels,
The most promising sectors for investment remain mineral extraction, energy (including solar and wind), telecommunications, hotel and restaurant services and agricultural infrastructure, followed by the milling industry (food flour and pasta production), beverage and food production, and meat and leather processing.
