Zinder, Niger 28 September 2021 - From 23 to 25 September 2021, UNODC, under the framework of the Global Action against Trafficking in Persons and the Smuggling of Migrants (GLO.ACT) funded by the Government of Italy and as part of its support to the government of Niger, organized a sensitization caravan for local elected officials, traditional chiefs, border officials, youth and women's associations and the local population living in villages along the border with Nigeria on the risks related to trafficking in persons (TIP) and smuggling of migrants (SOM) as well as the respective roles in protecting potential victims.
Human trafficking and migrant smuggling are complex realities in Niger. As a country that acts as a source, transit and destination point for victims of trafficking and smuggled migrants, Niger must address the expansion of criminal networks, both domestically and internationally. The region of Zinder, and notably the departments of Kantche and Magaria, both located at the border with Nigeria, is the most affected by the migration of young people and women who leave their villages to reach Algeria or Libya for better economic conditions. During their journey, they are highly exposed to the risks of being exploited by criminal networks. Nigerien authorities have made the fight against this phenomenon a government priority. However, many actors, predominantly local and traditional authorities and youth and border communities at large, have limited awareness about TIP and SOM.
In this context, the National Agency for the Fight against Trafficking in Persons and Smuggling of Migrants (ANLTP/TIM) and GLO.ACT team jointly organized a sensitization and awareness-raising caravan on the risks related TIP and SOM aiming to:
The mobile caravan reached multiple municipalities, including six municipalities in the districts of Kantche (Douche, El Dawa, Mai Moujia and Matameye) and Magaria (Tinkim and Magaria). Each sensitization session was opened by a representative of a local authority who provided a short overview of TIP and SOM in the region and focused on the modus operandi of local recruiters, the main itineraries, and the various forms of exploitation of women and young students, notably girls, may experience. The Director General of ANLTP/TIM Ousmane Mamane and the Prosecutor of Niamey Roro Abdoulaye gave a speech on the importance of fighting TIP and SOM, followed by a short intervention by UNODC Project Coordinator Maman Sadissou Laouali. A theatre troupe animated the sessions through performances combining spoken dialogues, acting and dance. In Mai Moujia, located precisely along the border with Nigeria, the sensitization was also attended by the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) police officials. They are deployed at the land border crossing.
Approximately 2,000 people were reached through the mobile caravan, out of which 800 were children and 600 were women between the ages of 15-24 years. ANLTP/TIM and GLO.ACT were delighted with the positive engagement of all relevant stakeholders and their active participation in the discussions. Looking ahead, this activity, which is part of a cycle of sensitization events at Niger's borders with Nigeria and Mali, paves the way for the definition of a comprehensive approach to combat trafficking in persons and smuggling of migrants, which aims to involve border actors and local communities and to increase the scope for collaboration with authorities from neighboring countries at both operational and institutional levels.
The Global Action against Trafficking in Persons and the Smuggling of Migrants - Niger (GLO.ACT-Niger) is a two-year (2019 - 2021) joint initiative by the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation (MFA) and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). An earlier phase of this project (2015-2019) was supported by the European Union.
The project builds on a global community of practice set in motion in GLO.ACT 2015-2019 and assists the Government of Niger in targeted, innovative, and demand-driven interventions: sustaining effective strategy and policy development, strengthening the criminal justice response, and regional and trans-regional cooperation.
This project is funded by the Government of Italy.