Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps she is taking to support (a) the African Union and (b) civil society groups in Chad in (i) ensuring that civilian organisations are able to participate in the forthcoming National Dialogue process and (ii) ensuring that a timely timetable for free, fair, and inclusive elections is set as part of the National Dialogue process.

The Government continues to follow the situation in Chad, including through our first resident Ambassador in N'Djamena, appointed in April 2021. The UK supports the African Union's conclusions on the transition back to civilian and constitutional rule in Chad, including the holding of democratic elections by October 2022. We have expressed this position to Chadian partners regularly through our diplomatic engagement, including in a visit from our Sahel Envoy in November 2021.

The UK supports freedom of expression and the rights of Chadians, like all peoples, to freedom of assembly and peaceful protest. Through the UN Development Programme, we are providing financial support for the inclusion of women and youth in Chad's national dialogue on the transition, which is due to begin on 15 February 2022.