More than 400,000 Chadian nationals have returned from Sudan three years after the outbreak of conflict, according to a press release by the International Organization for Migration (IOM). The figure, drawn from IOM’s Displacement Tracking Matrix, was reached earlier than projected. It reflects mounting humanitarian costs and growing pressure on fragile communities and limited services across eastern Chad. IOM is urging stronger support for returnees and their host communities. The announcement was made in N’Djamena on 15 June 2026.
Eastern Chad was already under strain before the Sudan crisis began. The scale of new arrivals has intensified pressure on water, shelter, healthcare and other essential services. The affected provinces were already facing high humanitarian needs prior to the crisis. Many returnees have settled in spontaneous sites or within host communities in Ouaddaï, Wadi Fira and Sila provinces. They often arrive with very limited resources.
According to IOM data, 58 per cent of returnees are female and 69 per cent are children. Returnees urgently need shelter, water, household items, health care and protection. Many come back to communities they may not have known, without land, documentation, or family networks. They are among those who have borne the greatest burden of the conflict. Yet their plight remains the most overlooked despite their vulnerabilities.
“I sat with women returnees who walked for weeks, sometimes carrying children who were not their own, orphaned or lost along the way. As they return home, we cannot allow them to remain invisible,” said SungAh Lee, IOM Deputy Director General for Management and Reform, during her visit to the country.
She added that the response must extend beyond short-term relief. It must prioritize protection, health, dignity and longer-term support for women, children and host communities. Lee met with families that fled the conflict at the Adré border crossing.
Since the outbreak of the crisis, IOM has worked with the Government of Chad, local authorities, communities and partners. Support has included shelter, water, sanitation and hygiene, non-food items, multi-purpose cash assistance, protection services, and mental health and psychosocial support. As the crisis enters its fourth year, the limits of an emergency-only response are becoming impossible to ignore. IOM is calling for continued humanitarian assistance alongside investments in livelihoods, community infrastructure and locally led recovery. With returnees now accounting for nearly a third of all arrivals from Sudan into Chad, the needs are no longer temporary.
