Chad has banned the export of several staple crops and removed import duties on essential food products after extreme heat and drought damaged harvests and threatened domestic supplies.
“The Chadian government has banned the export of millet, corn, rice, sorghum, wheat, and cotton seeds effective September 9, 2026, while eliminating import duties and taxes on several staple goods and agricultural equipment. These measures aim to safeguard the domestic market supply after periods of extreme heat and drought have impacted crops in various regions of the country,” Benin Web TV reported on September 10.
The exemptions also cover certain flours and semolina products, livestock feed, and equipment used for drilling, water pumping and agricultural production. Sesame, groundnuts and cotton fiber are not included in the ban.
The export restrictions took effect nationwide, with exemptions requiring prior authorization from the Ministry of Commerce. Officials have warned that violations could lead to administrative, customs and legal penalties.
The government’s decision follows repeated dry spells and intense heat between July and mid-August. The Food and Agriculture Organization has warned that the weather has affected cereal development and could reduce yields in several parts of the country.
Keda Ballah, Chad’s minister of agricultural production and industrialization, said the central, eastern and northern regions were the hardest hit. Authorities plan to expand irrigated, off-season farming to compensate for losses during the main agricultural season.
The World Food Programme projects that nearly 3.2 million people, about 15% of Chad’s population, will face acute food insecurity during the June-to-August 2026 lean season. Chad is also hosting approximately 1.5 million refugees, including more than 940,600 people who fled Sudan after the conflict began in April 2023.
Famine Early Warning Systems Network expects Crisis-level food insecurity, classified as IPC Phase 3, to persist through January 2027 in several eastern departments heavily affected by the refugee influx. It also forecasts that between 2.5 million and 2.99 million people will require food assistance, with needs peaking between July and September.
