Chad Geography - 2022

GEOGRAPHICAL NAMES 

Location

Central Africa, south of Libya

Geographic coordinates

15 00 N, 19 00 E

Map references

Africa

Area

total: 1.284 million sq km

land: 1,259,200 sq km

water: 24,800 sq km

Area - comparative

almost nine times the size of New York state; slightly more than three times the size of California

Area comparison map

Land boundaries

total: 6,406 km

border countries (6): Cameroon 1,116 km; Central African Republic 1,556 km; Libya 1,050 km; Niger 1,196 km; Nigeria 85 km; Sudan 1,403 km

Coastline

0 km (landlocked)

Maritime claims

none (landlocked)

Climate

tropical in south, desert in north

Terrain

broad, arid plains in center, desert in north, mountains in northwest, lowlands in south

Elevation

highest point: Emi Koussi 3,445 m

lowest point: Djourab 160 m

mean elevation: 543 m

Natural resources

petroleum, uranium, natron, kaolin, fish (Lake Chad), gold, limestone, sand and gravel, salt

Land use

agricultural land: 39.6% (2018 est.)

arable land: 3.9% (2018 est.)

permanent crops: 0% (2018 est.)

permanent pasture: 35.7% (2018 est.)

forest: 9.1% (2018 est.)

other: 51.3% (2018 est.)

Irrigated land

300 sq km (2012)

Major lakes (area sq km)

fresh water lake(s): Lake Chad (endorheic lake shared with Niger, Nigeria, and Cameroon) - 10,360-25,900 sq km
note - area varies by season and year to year

Major watersheds (area sq km)

Atlantic Ocean drainage: Niger (2,261,741 sq km)
Internal (endorheic basin) drainage: Lake Chad (2,497,738 sq km)

Major aquifers

Lake Chad Basin, Nubian Aquifer System

Population distribution

the population is unevenly distributed due to contrasts in climate and physical geography; the highest density is found in the southwest, particularly around Lake Chad and points south; the dry Saharan zone to the north is the least densely populated as shown in this population distribution map

Natural hazards

hot, dry, dusty harmattan winds occur in north; periodic droughts; locust plagues

Geography - note

note 1: Chad is the largest of Africa's 16 landlocked countries

note 2: not long ago - geologically speaking - what is today the Sahara was green savannah teeming with wildlife; during the African Humid Period, roughly 11,000 to 5,000 years ago, a vibrant animal community, including elephants, giraffes, hippos, and antelope lived there; the last remnant of the "Green Sahara" exists in the Lakes of Ounianga (oo-nee-ahn-ga) in northern Chad, a series of 18 interconnected freshwater, saline, and hypersaline lakes now protected as a World Heritage site

note 3: Lake Chad, the most significant water body in the Sahel, is a remnant of a former inland sea, paleolake Mega-Chad; at its greatest extent, sometime before 5000 B.C., Lake Mega-Chad was the largest of four Saharan paleolakes that existed during the African Humid Period; it covered an area of about 400,000 sq km (150,000 sq mi), roughly the size of today's Caspian Sea

NOTE: The information regarding Chad on this page is re-published from the 2022 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency and other sources. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Chad 2022 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Chad 2022 should be addressed to the CIA or the source cited on each page.