Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with the government of Chad in relation to security in the Sahel region; and what assessment they have made of the impact of instability in the Sahel region on the UK.

The UK engages directly with Chad through our non-resident ambassador and our office in N'Djamena. The ambassador last spoke to Foreign Minister Cherif on 9 June to discuss the impacts of COVID-19, the security situation, plans for elections and other elements of UK-Chad cooperation.

The UK is deeply concerned about the deteriorating security situation in the Sahel and is clear that long-term peace and stability in this region will support UK interests, including in wider West Africa. The UK is committed to working with all partners, including the G5 Sahel countries, to support those most in need and tackle the long-term drivers of instability in the region. The Minister for Africa, James Duddridge, attended the first meeting of the Sahel Alliance General Assembly and the sixth Summit of the G5 Leaders (Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania and Niger) in Mauritania on 25 February. He also attended the virtual ministerial meeting of the Coalition for the Sahel on 12 June. At both meetings, he reaffirmed the UK's efforts to improve security and encourage development in the Sahel.

The UK is supporting the security response across the Sahel region, including in Chad, through three CH47 Chinook helicopters and support personnel in a non-combat role with the French-led counter-terrorism mission Operation BARKHANE. The UK is committed to helping the G5 Sahel Joint Force reach full operational capability, and has provided bilateral funding towards the provision of non-lethal military equipment and support for the human rights compliance framework. The UK is also supporting efforts to improve security in the Lake Chad Basin. The UK contributes military personnel to the P3 Cellule de Coordination et Liaison in N'Djamena, which gives the Multi-National Joint Task Force technical and strategic support. The UK is also supporting Chad by providing life-saving humanitarian assistance to those affected by the crisis, while investing in longer-term resilience through programmes that help widen access to social protection and enable households to adapt to the changing climate. Between 2015 and 2019, the UK provided over £91.2 million to Chad in bilateral humanitarian and development aid.