Chad Launches Circular Economy Roadmap to Drive Green Growth

One of the most promising examples of Chad’s circular transition is Karo, a youth-led enterprise founded by Ghislain Bindah Dingaotabet.

In a significant leap toward sustainable development, the Republic of Chad has officially adopted its first-ever national roadmap for the circular economy, marking a bold shift in how the Sahelian nation approaches economic growth, resource use, and environmental stewardship. The Roadmap for the Circular Economy 2025–2035, unveiled on 9 July 2025, represents a critical milestone in Chad’s long-term vision to build a resilient, inclusive, and low-carbon economy, firmly aligned with its Vision 2030 national development plan.

This transformative strategy is supported by the African Development Bank’s Circular Economy Facility (ACEF) and implemented in collaboration with the African Circular Economy Alliance (ACEA). It positions Chad among a growing cohort of African nations—such as Benin, Ethiopia, and Cameroon—that are formalizing circular economy frameworks under the National Circular Economy Roadmaps (NCER) initiative.

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From Informality to National Strategy

For decades, informal waste collection and reuse have quietly powered local economies in Chad’s capital, N'Djamena, where residents are familiar with calls from neighborhood recyclers asking, “Do you have any bottles?” What was once survival-based practice is now evolving into a structured, nationally endorsed development strategy.

“This initiative is not a luxury, but rather a vital necessity for the future of Chad,” declared Hassan Bakhit Djamous, Minister for the Environment. “It’s about conserving our natural resources, fighting pollution, creating sustainable jobs, and supporting local innovation. It also offers us a path to diversify an economy still heavily reliant on oil.”

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Addressing Urgent National Challenges

Chad’s circular economy roadmap comes at a time when the country faces a range of development challenges:

• Over 3.7 million people are food insecure

• Annual post-harvest losses exceed 200,000 tons

• Access to electricity is below 12%, among the lowest in Africa

• High youth unemployment and increasing urban waste volumes

Against this backdrop, the roadmap proposes innovative, resource-efficient solutions grounded in local needs and environmental realities. For example:

• Converting agricultural waste into compost

• Producing biogas from animal and plant waste

• Reusing treated wastewater for irrigation

• Scaling up solar and biomass energy solutions in rural areas

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Roadmap Goals and Structure

The roadmap sets ambitious national goals for 2035:

• 40% reduction in non-recycled waste

• Creation of over 25,000 green jobs

• Increasing energy access through circular energy solutions

• Cutting pollution in key sectors, including agriculture and construction

Six priority sectors have been identified:

1. Agri-food systems

2. Waste management

3. Plastics recycling

4. Sustainable construction

5. Water resource management

6. Renewable energy

Within these pillars, 30 targeted initiatives have been outlined, including:

• The establishment of circular farms, modeled on the Songhai Center in Benin

• Integrating eco-friendly materials into national building codes

• Creating youth-led recycling enterprises, especially in underserved urban areas

• Launching green innovation labs to support local entrepreneurs

• Strengthening public-private partnerships for waste-to-energy projects

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Innovation from the Ground Up: Spotlight on “Karo”

One of the most promising examples of Chad’s circular transition is Karo, a youth-led enterprise founded by Ghislain Bindah Dingaotabet. Based in N'Djamena, Karo is already operationalizing elements of the new roadmap. The company:

• Collects over 7 tons of plastic waste each year

• Recycles 15 tons of plastic into eco-friendly construction bricks

• Is piloting biogas systems for rural households and small farms

“We are a team of innovative and committed young people, ready to put our energy at the disposal of the country,” said Dingaotabet. “We just need to be given the means to turn our ideas into reality.”

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Strong Governance and Continental Momentum

Chad’s roadmap is guided by a national technical steering committee, comprising public institutions, NGOs, and technical and financial partners. Two major workshops helped develop the roadmap, providing a platform for cross-sectoral engagement and stakeholder consensus.

Supported by the ACEF’s three-pillar framework—(1) strong national policies, (2) promotion of circular entrepreneurship, and (3) continental cooperation—Chad’s strategy is part of a broader African-led movement to localize sustainability and resilience.

“Circularity is not just an environmental response—it’s an economic imperative,” noted ACEF representatives. “Through inclusive strategies like Chad’s, African countries are rewriting the narrative of development from the ground up.”

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Circular Economy as a Path to Sovereignty

By reimagining waste as a resource, Chad is not only addressing environmental degradation but also strengthening its economic sovereignty. With support from regional partners and international agencies, the country is turning vulnerabilities into development assets.

In the long term, this roadmap offers a home-grown pathway for economic diversification beyond fossil fuels, while creating thousands of jobs and improving livelihoods in one of the world’s most climate-vulnerable regions.

Chad’s circular economy roadmap is more than a policy document—it’s a manifesto for resilience, innovation, and African-led transformation.