GENEVA, 5 July 2007 (LWI) - The Lutheran World Federation (LWF) Department for World Service (DWS) is opening a field office in Chad. An emergency coordinator will be in the region during the second week of July to establish office in eastern Chad, near Koukou, in the conflict-affected region bordering Darfur, western Sudan. Focus will mainly be on the large numbers of internally displaced persons (IDPs) who fled cross-border violence spilling over from Darfur.

The decision to start operations in the north central African country follows an LWF-led joint assessment mission to eastern Chad from 23 May to 8 June 2007 on behalf of Action by Churches Together (ACT) International. The LWF is a founding member of the Geneva-based ACT, which coordinates churches' response to emergencies worldwide.

World Service will be working in Chad in close cooperation with ACT members Norwegian Church Aid, Church of Sweden and Christian Aid. An initial ACT Appeal for Chad issued on 29 June targets some USD 1.95 million from the ACT partners to respond to the needs of over 121,000 displaced people at a number of sites in the Dar Sila district. The intervention will include site management, community services, protection, psycho-social support, and the installation and management of water and sanitation facilities. The situation is particularly difficult during the June to September rainy season.

Commenting on the new LWF operation in Chad, DWS director Rev. Eberhard Hitzler points out that the decision to act immediately after the assessment is a "response to a so far rather neglected humanitarian crisis." He notes that "while even the Darfur crisis does not get the expected international public attention, there is almost no attention given to the humanitarian crisis in the neighboring countries." Preparations are also underway for additional staff to support the larger planned intervention.

The conflict in Darfur "impacts heavily on civilian population in the neighboring countries especially Chad. As is the case in any conflict it is the women, children and the elderly who are most affected," Hitzler told Lutheran World Information (LWI).

The ACT Appeal highlights the need to accord urgent attention to the protection of vulnerable women and children, and to prioritize the inclusion of women in the planning for site management and other site-related activities.

The current ACT Appeal covers a period of six months till the end of December 2007, with plans to continue as the DWS program is developed. The planned programs in the appeal will also be extended to the surrounding villages to ensure that IDPs and local populations enjoy a similar standard of service provision to minimize any potential conflict between various populations.

The DWS director expresses gratitude to all the ACT/LWF partners who have "made the timely response possible" and appeals for "further support."

According to the 2006 UN Human Development Index, around 80 percent of Chad's 10.1 million people live below the poverty line. They are mainly subsistence farmers and livestock herders.

The Department for World Service is the LWF's internationally recognized humanitarian and development agency. In addition to its Geneva-based offices, it currently works in 36 countries in Africa, Asia, Latin and Central America and Europe, through four regional and 15 country programs and emergency operations.

A photo essay about the ACT assessment mission is available on the ACT Web site http://www.act-intl.org