The climate crisis is a reality all over the world. But it is especially
apparent in the parched landscapes of northern Africa, where conflict
follows close behind. In the last of our three part series of reports
from Chad, Special correspondent Willem Marx looks at just how dire
this crisis has become.
Far from home, but safe for now. This refugee camp in one country.
Chad houses a community from another Cameroon.
Among those living here is how Ali better left behind the land. She
Longo really recognized. What actually changed is that during our
grandparents time the harvest was good. But these days, farming is
not good. You know, when you over exploit the land for many years,
the land's fertility is depleted.
Like generations before her how his family had raised and grazed
cattle. But a changing climate created a completely new challenge.
There is not enough rain, not enough Rain in the cattle cannot survive
without water. The cattle had to move further away to get water and
that is where they settle. Her community began competing with another
local group for access to water and how it says disputes soon turned
deadly.
The
men started killing each other villages and houses were burned.
People were killed and burned. People were decapitated
room Mhm
women Children were killed
The
motto
over three days of fighting last December. She estimates more than
150. People died
burned our houses. They burned our food. They burned our cows and
sheep. They left nothing at all.
He fled with family members across Cameroon's border to Chad, where
she currently survives on foraging Barta handouts.
Of course, there are difficulties when you leave your own home and
come as a guest to another place. You should expect things to be
different. You obviously have to accept whatever you are given.
Hmm.
Authorities built this refugee camp of 3.5 1000 people in essentially
six months after Cameroonians flooded into Chad late last year and
early this year, cause essentially climate change because the lack
of water created a conflict a very violent conflict between two different
communities. Can you believe that Because of water people are killing
each other
because of water. Water is what many people were killed for, Brahim
16 told us
He was once a keen college student. But the spasm of inter community
violence interrupted his studies, however,
would actually scared me right from the start was the fighting.
Without warning. Fighting erupted in our midst in Kousseri, my town
we saw some of the neighborhoods, one called Madagascar and some
others burned down right in front of our eyes.
His parents pushed the 22 year old to leave, afraid he'd be killed
if he stayed in Cameroon
now living on his own for the first time, he's house proud about
what little he has
Showing off his yard work and dinner preparations.
Do you have more food or less food here is less food less than come
around.
Cameroon
three times for this
day three times per day, but her two times right now in Chad, the
estimates there are more than half a million refugees from several
neighboring nations, including Cameroon. Escaping violence or persecution
is now increasingly linked to a lack of resources like land or water,
even if Clement changes, not the reason to grant refugee statues.
We still notice that there is growing and growing situation where
climate change is the root cause of the clashes between community.
You have the urban refugees, which
is a manager at UNHCR, the UN refugee agency responsible for the
Cameroonian population in Chad. People are moving, you have displaced
population moving because of armed conflict.
But we have also people moving within the country because they have
lack of water. They can no longer crop in the area they used to crop
because actually, I'm conflict forced them to move our because the
reality of climate forced them to not use the land the small land
they used to have to corrupt their own stuff.
In Chad's western Lac region. Water is visible by its absence as
we cross the landscape of dried out lakes to another camp beside
a shrunken body of water.
Fresh paint to sign that little hair changes. Besides the date, food
assistance remains URGENT. These people have always lived in Chad,
but were forced from their homes by Boko Haram, a brutal Islamist
movement.
Chatty and soldiers provide some security after several camp members
were killed in an attack just 12 miles away, and two days before
our visit.
One of the dead was a cousin of Gold Madre, Um, a lifelong farmer
forced to take up mat weaving to earn extra money for food.
Small local stream has run dry in the years since she arrived here,
leaving her with few other options. Here. There is no Laker River
to fish and we don't have an irrigation system for agriculture.
Under a roof of us supplied cardboard scraps. She will not return
home. She insists. Whatever current conditions
there we were killed. Even if there's no water here, I would still
prefer to stay here. You have no good choices. Then
here at least we live in peace. We don't get killed by Boko Haram.
Across Chad. There are hundreds, if not thousands of villages like
this one temporary structures built out of twigs and top hole in
housing. What the calls internally displaced people, people who often
arrive here from somewhere else. They start looking for food. They
often struggle and then move on.
Climate change is causing displacement across the Sahel, the region
just south of the Sahara Desert.
But in villages like Laguna residents are being helped to stay.
These palm tree branches are a new natural barrier Resilience program
designed to protect local food production.
The result is a dip in the desert transformed in five years from
dry crack land like this to a garden of plenty surrounded by greenery.
Albert 30 years ago this Wadi this valley was abandoned by local
people because sand from nearby June's was encroaching and what they
did a few years ago to try and remedy that was to add animal droppings.
Along with organic matter from plants like this, mix it all together
to create this kind of soil that's incredibly conducive for agriculture.
Abrahim declare, manages this project supported by a charity called
Adele.
He spends five days each week living in the village returning home
every weekend.
Maryam Adamu, the wife of the village head is one of many workers
helping out clearing weeds from a patch of pepper plants
This time of year is known as the lean season. It's another six weeks
until this corn can be harvested while the wheat was last cut in
April, so the Villagers stocks are running low
Valassis this time of year that's more difficult than the other periods
because the production is still in progress. And now, food purchases
are more expensive. This time of year really is the most.
Solar power drives just one of the four water pumps that irrigate
the fields. The rest rely on diesel and prices have skyrocketed,
thanks to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
People knew. But Saleh says he hopes the work here will mean people
will not in future suffers. Similar food insecurity and shortages.
This year is a bit better than before each year. The difficulty reduces,
especially as there is an increase in production. Food insecurity
has fallen
farmers here in Chad, like many across this region, forced to adapt
by forces far beyond their control.
For the PBS news hour. I'm Villa marks in Laguna Chad.
So hard to watch. And in case you missed them. You can watch Bill
um Marxist to other stories on the food crisis and the security threats