IOM NIGER OVERVIEW NOVEMBER 2017 MIGRANT RESOURCE AND RESPONSE MECHANISM (MRRM) The Migrant Resource and Response Mechanism (MRRM) is a mechanism that provides direct assistance to migrants in transit and carries out activities to promote viable alternatives to migration, to inform individuals about safe migration and to encourage activities that ensure that migrants can contribute to the economy of their country of origin. This mechanism, in line with the mandate of the International Organization for Migration (IOM), aims to contribute to the promotion of dignified and safe migration for all and to support the efforts of the Government of Niger to develop an effective approach to managing migration. The MRRM is comprised of the following services and support components: 1. DIRECT ASSISTANCE TO MIGRANTS DURING THE MIGRATORY PHASE (SHELTER, FOOD, PSYCHOSOCIAL SUPPORT) ; 2. SEARCH AND RESCUE OPERATIONS TO ASSIST MIGRANTS IN DISTRESS ; 3. PROTECTION TO ALL MIGRANTS, IN PARTICULAR THE CASE MANAGEMENT OF THOSE INDIVIDUALLY ASSESSED AS MOST VULNERABLE (INCLUDING VICTIMS OF TRAFFICKING) ; 4. ASSISTED VOLUNTARY RETURN AND REINTEGRATION IN THE COUNTRY OF ORIGIN ; 5. COMMUNICATION AND AWARENESS-RAISING ON SAFE AND REGULAR MIGRATION, AS WELL AS RESEARCH AND INFORMATION GATHERING ACTIVITIES 6. SUPPORT TO GOVERNMENT STRUCTURES OF NIGER.
THE MIGRATORY CONTEXT IN NIGER With low socioeconomic and developmental indices (187/188 UNDP HDI 2016) and the highest demographic rate (an average 7.6 children per woman), Niger is at the migratory crossroads of West and Central Africa and is one of the least developed countries in the world. This results in a high dependency rate in Niger where almost 70% of the 18.5 million inhabitants under the age of 24 (50% aged 0-14). The economy depends heavily on subsistence agriculture and is vulnerable to climatic hazards and regional insecurity. About 40% of the population lives below the poverty line. Instability in neighboring countries (especially Mali, Libya and Nigeria) as well as internal conflicts in parts of Niger, periods of drought, repetitive flooding and establishment of free movement in the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) are all the factors determining migration flows that affect Niger as a country of origin, transit and destination for migrants. The country which is acting as the last boarder of ECOWAS before Libya and Algeria, welcomes migrants from the region who came to undertake commercial activities as well as those who came to reach Europe via Algeria or Libya. Indeed, for more than 90% of migrants assisted by IOM (both Nigeriens and third-country nationals) the desire to improve their living conditions and the search for better economic opportunities are the main reasons for their decision to migrate. Most of them expressed their despair and frustration at the lack of economic opportunities and prospects in their countries of origin as well as their hopes based on the possibility of improving their socioeconomic status and that of their community. However for many migrants this migratory path leads to failures such as loss of income, excessive road expenses, victims of mistreatment and trafficking, etc. Often they are without means to carry out an autonomous return to their countries of origin and so remain stranded in Niger, Libya or Algeria in situations of distress. At the same time, these important migratory flows increase the pressure on the already limited resources of Niger, leading to the possibility of frustrations and tensions for local populations. Thus, by the end of 2016, the European Union (EU) has become one of Niger's partners in combatting against irregular migration, resulting in a more repressive policy on drug traffickers, migrants and consequentially impacting migration dynamics in the country. Moreover, in September 2017, the Libyan borders with Niger and Chad have been closed for a period of three months in order to fight the arms, drugs and irregular migration thriving in these border areas. All of these restrictive measures force migrants to use much more fragmented and dangerous roads to avoid authorities checkpoints. MIGRATORY ROADS IN WEST AFRICA
SEARCH AND RESCUE Migrants who leave Agadez trying to reach Libya or Algeria through the desert can find themselves, for various reasons, sometimes abandoned or stranded in this desert. Under the MRRM, IOM Niger, in collaboration with the civil and military authorities, is conducting search and rescue operations in the Agadez region to assist migrants abandoned and/or stranded in the desert so as to come to the immediate assistance to these migrants in distress as well as supporting the response of the Government of Niger. Thus, since October 2016, IOM, in collaboration with the Directorate General of Civil Protection (DGPC), is undertaking these search and rescue operations. Operations are initiated when IOM receives information about the presence of desperate migrants in the desert, with information provided by the migrants themselves or by local authorities. Rescued migrants are taken to one of the three IOM Niger transit centers in the Agadez region (Agadez, Arlit or Dirkou). Rescued migrants are often in difficult mental and physical conditions, suffering from trauma, dehydration and other injuries. In addition to providing medical care and psychosocial support, IOM staff also sensitize migrants about the opportunity of participating in IOM's voluntary return and reintegration program. TRANSIT CENTRES IOM S RESPONSE FOR MIGRANTS IN NEED IN NIGER IOM operates five open transit centers for migrants, one in Arlit (300 places), one in Dirkou (150 places), one in Agadez (1,000 places) and two in Niamey (for a total of 200 places). One of the centers in Niamey is specialized for especially vulnerable migrants, housing unaccompanied minors and vulnerable women, medical cases and victims of human trafficking. These transit centers are all open, that is, accommodation is voluntary and return assistance is provided on a voluntary basis. IOM operates no closed and /or detention centers. All migrants arriving at the center are registered, profiled and advised by IOM staff. Staying within the centers allows migrants to finalize their return plans, to contact their families through IOM telephone calls and to ensure that travel documents and tickets are organized, with respect to security constraints and medical conditions, either by road or by air. Direct and immediate assistance includes the provision of water and food, accommodation (in the centers), responding medical needs, psychosocial support and travel documents.
PROTECTION AND DIRECT ASSISTANCE Specially trained personnel ensure the individual follow-up of all of the most vulnerable migrants (minors, women, families, medical cases, victims of trafficking, elderly people, people with disabilities etc.) in order to cover their specific needs. Many migrants profiled in IOM transit centers can present physical and mental trauma, which is generally the result of illtreatment in Libya as well as the deception of transporters and smugglers who abandon migrants in the desert. Confiscation of identity documents and money is also a source of trauma. IOM, in partnership with the Italian NGO COOPI, provides migrants with the opportunity to have individual psychological support, to participate in group therapy, and to participate in recreational activities. In addition, the IOM medical team assists all migrants in need, through permanent staff in the infirmaries. First aid and followup of small trauma is provided, while migrants with more serious problems are referred to state structures, with costs being covered by IOM, particularly through partnership agreements. Medical escorts are carried out according to needs, and indications for longer-term follow-up are transmitted from the medical team in Niger to health referents in the country of origin. Protection teams also closely monitor migrants under 18 years of age. Since 2016, more than 250 unaccompanied minors from Niger and third countries have been assisted in the transit centers of IOM. Specific assistance for unaccompanied minors includes, in addition to basic services, psychosocial support and follow-up appropriate to their age, and the possibility of taking part in specific activities, including English and computer courses. Through coordination with protection actors in Niger, particularly the Judge for Minors and UNICEF, provisional placement orders are obtained while IOM coordinates the family tracing with the regions of origin of the migrants and determines the best interests of the child with judicial authorities. All unaccompanied minors also benefit from an individual reintegration project, once they have been accompanied by IOM to their place of residence. For migrants who have been exploited and/or are victims of human trafficking, specific assessment is carried out, in coordination with the Agence Nationale de Lutte contre la Traite de Personnes (National Agency for the Fight against Human Trafficking), in order to guarantee their safety and to offer them the possibility to recover. Through the MRRM and other projects implemented by IOM Niger, training is provided on the identification and referral of victims of trafficking to labor inspectors, border agents, civil society members, customary authorities, etc. In August 2017, a two-year agreement was signed with the ANLTP to strengthen the capacities of the actors involved, develop awareness-raising and strengthen direct assistance to victims. Finally, as part of the standard procedures developed jointly with the Ministry of the Interior and the
Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in 2016, asylum seekers identified under IOM programs are referred to UNHCR. ASSISTED VOLUNTARY RETURN IOM assists all migrants, Nigeriens and third-country nationals who wish to return home, including migrants who have benefited from humanitarian evacuations from Libya (usually Nigeriens). Apart from temporary accommodation in one of its five transit centers, this assistance includes liaison with the consulates and embassies in order to obtain the travel documents or the passes; the booking of air tickets or bus tickets for migrants' journeys to their countries of origin, as well as the provision of pocket money to cover small expenses (eg food) during their return journey. In order to support these diplomatic and/or consular authorities1 in issuing travel documents for assisted migrants, IOM provides technical and/or material support where necessary. The number of migrants wishing to benefit from voluntary return assistance to return home has increased since 20162. These migrants come mainly from ECOWAS countries such as Nigeria, Senegal, Guinea-Conakry, Guinea-Bissau, Gambia, Mali, as well as other countries in the sub region with bilateral free movement with Niger (notably Cameroon and Chad). In addition, as part of the agreement between the Governments of Niger and Algeria, IOM assisted Nigerien migrants returning from Algeria. Between 2015 and 2017, IOM assisted more than 18,000 migrants through this agreement with registration and food assistance, with most migrants from the Zinder region - a migratory flow that has the peculiarity of having many women and minors. In 2017, IOM continues to support the Government of Niger with dealing with the returns from Algeria in the framework of the aforementioned report. SUSTAINABLE REINTEGRATION OF MIGRANTS Support for the reintegration of migrants into their countries of origin is essential to ensure the sustainability of returns. Individual, community and community reintegration projects are implemented by IOM. The aim of these activities is to 1 The following countries, Senegal, Chad, Mali, Burkina Faso, Benin, Nigeria, Guinea Conakry and Mauritania provide travel documents to their nationals referred to them by IOM in the framework of the assisted voluntary return program. For those states not having a diplomatic or consular representation in Niger, the Direction de la Surveillance du Territoire (DST Direction of Surveillance of the Territory) provides a laisser-passer (one way only) to allow for those migrants referred by IOM to return to their country of origin. To this end, IOM supports the DST with technological equipment to facilitate and accelerate this procedure. 2 While all the migrants arriving at the centre express a desire to voluntarily return to their country of origin, some change their minds during their stay at the centre and leave the centre of their own volition before the return assistance can be provided. This explains the difference in the number of migrants assisted in the centres and the number of migrants assisted with voluntary return towards their countries and regions of origin.
promote sustainable development, to help migrants reintegrate into their countries of origin through social and economic support and to prevent the risks that migrants face during their migratory journey and their return. Three types of reintegration are proposed: Assistance for individual reintegration targets vulnerable migrants, such as unaccompanied minors and victims of trafficking. Depending on the vulnerabilities of the person, IOM offers individual support, which allows the migrants concerned to implement a small economic project and/or to continue training and reintegrate into the local labor market. Collective reintegration is designed for a group of migrants, usually from the same community, who wishes to carry out the same activity, for example to create a business, run a small business etc. Community reintegration is intended for returning migrants and communities of origin. It aims to help migrants to reintegrate into society but also to include the communities of origin affected by migration. Thus the factors of migration can be addressed by taking into account the needs and difficulties of the communities of origin, and it also avoids creating a sense of frustration for the local population to whom assistance is also offered. Community reintegration is implemented, as far as possible, through local NGOs based in the target regions with the support of IOM missions. Investment in key subsistence activities such as agriculture, fisheries, transport or trade is the main objective of these initiatives. Since January 2017, IOM Niger has been implementing 20 community micro-projects aimed at strengthening the link between assisted voluntary return activities and the development of small initiatives in countries of origin. The regions targeted by community reintegration projects are the main regions of origin of migrants assisted with voluntary return, namely Guinea- Bissau, Guinea-Conakry, Cameroon, Mali and Senegal. Each micro-project is implemented by IOM jointly with an NGO selected through a call for tender and targets 300 beneficiaries (both returned and community members). The projects are distributed as follows: 3 vocational training projects and the creation of income-generating activities in Guinea Bissau; 4 projects in agriculture, poultry farming and vocational training in Guinea-Conakry, 4 projects in beef fattening, poultry farming and fish farming in Mali; 4 projects in poultry farming and agriculture in Cameroon; 4 projects in poultry farming, agricultural gardening and fattening in Senegal. SENSITIZATION ACTIVITIES IOM operates Listening and Guidance Centers or Bureau d Ecoute et d Orientation for migrants in the region of Agadez (Agadez, Arlit and Dirkou) and in Niamey, offering migrants and host communities easy access to objective information on safe migration, as well as individual advice. In parallel, community mobilizers were recruited and trained to reach the migrants
in the 'ghettos' of Agadez, Arlit, Dirkou and Niamey as well as in the bus stations and other places where migrants gather. These community mobilizers organize informal and informative meetings with migrants to inform them about the dangers of irregular migration and the assistance offered by IOM. In general, migrants are interested in the following topics: regular and irregular migration, migration hazards, the ECOWAS area and documents needed to travel, IOM and what IOM can offer for return in the communities of origin), Libya and Algeria. Of the migrants who approached the BEO directly to receive more counseling, many registered for IOM's assisted voluntary return program. SUPPORT TO THE GOVERNMENT OF NIGER The MRRM is a mechanism aimed at providing a coordinated long-term response to migration flows by building on and strengthening national structures. Thus, the activities described above are carried out in close collaboration with the local authorities and coordinated with the central authorities of Niger. To this end, several agreements have been signed and implemented between IOM and the Government of Niger, namely: The Memorandum of Understanding signed between the Ministry of Interior, UNHCR and IOM in March 2017 on the identification of asylum seekers in Niger among migrant flows from West Africa and Central Africa; The Memorandum of Understanding signed between the DGPC and IOM in March 2017 on their cooperation in all stages of the process of voluntary return, assistance to migrants on migration routes and assistance to victims of natural disasters ; The Bilateral Cooperation Agreement signed between ANLTP/TIM and IOM in August 2017 defining a framework for collaboration between the two structures. Regular coordination meetings with institutional partners are organized to define the modalities for the implementation of the MRRM. In addition, coordination between IOM and government authorities on migration management has been significantly improved through institutional capacity-building through the organization of training (from court representatives, police officers, focal points of the ANLTP/TIM) supported by equipment donations (computers, printers, ink, paper, etc.). Due to this type of support, the average waiting period for the establishment of safe conduct for migrants who have no representation in Niger has been reduced from 3 to 1 days and the coordination between the IOM and the judiciary, assistance to minors has been considerably strengthened.