In Chad, oil extraction began in 2003. The 1999 law inspired by the Bretton Woods institutions is designed to ensure that oil revenues are either used for poverty reduction and development or saved for future generations, thus avoiding the effects of the so-called "Dutch disease". However, one year after the first revenues were received, the country is facing cash shortages, even though priority sectors (including health, education and rural development) can hardly absorb their allocations. This paradoxical situation is the source of social tensions, leading the government to question some basic principles of the law.