Doctors Without Borders investigation finds exploitation by staff in Chad

An internal report by the aid group Doctors Without Borders, known by its French initials MSF, has found that local and foreign staff exploited refugees in Chad, sometimes targeting underage girls and other times trading food aid and jobs for sex.

The report was completed last July but was first reported on by The Associated Press news agency on Saturday.

The organisation acknowledged 59 allegations of abuse, although it said there were likely more as survivors were reluctant to speak out. As a result, 18 local and foreign staff members were dismissed and barred from future employment.

The internal investigation followed an AP investigation published in November 2024, which revealed that Sudanese women seeking refuge in Chad were being offered jobs and assistance in exchange for sex by aid workers and local security forces.

Hundreds of thousands of Sudanese have been displaced into eastern Chad amid a devastating civil war in its fourth year. Thousands have been killed in the conflict.

In refugee camps in Chad, MSF is one of the biggest organisations responding to the crisis. The organisation noted in the internal report that it had allocated extra resources in Chad to prevent and fight abuse, including training staff, but said those measures did not have a lasting impact.

MSF told the AP its findings were “a candid internal analysis” of where its systems had failed.

The 59 allegations of misconduct ranged from sexual harassment to exploitation and abuse and “represent a serious breach of MSF’s values and responsibilities, and we deeply regret the harm caused”, it said.