Jump to a specific section of the profile:

Treaty Status | Management & Coordination | Impact (contamination & casualties) | Addressing the Impact (land release, risk education, victim assistance)

Country summary

The extent of remaining antipersonnel mine contamination in the Republic of Niger is unclear. In 2020, Niger reported that one mined area, covering less than 0.2km², was identified next to Madama military base in the northeast of the country. While in recent years, there have been reports of contamination and casualties due to improvised mines (victim-activated improvised explosive devices, IEDs) in western Niger. However, as of end 2020, Niger has yet to clarify whether those reports involved antipersonnel mines.

Historically, from 2002 to 2006, Niger consistently reported the existence of mined areas in the country. However, at the June 2008 Mine Ban Treaty intersessional meetings, Niger declared that there were no remaining areas suspected to contain antipersonnel mines. Nonetheless, in May 2012, and more than two years after the expiry of its original clearance deadline, Niger informed States Parties that at least one mined area contained antipersonnel mines in Madama and five areas were suspected of contamination in the Agadez region.[1] There are differing reports of the extent of land cleared from 2014 to 2016, and no clearance was conducted between 2016 and the first half of 2019. Niger has submitted four requests to extend its mine clearance deadline, the most recent of which was submitted in 2020 and requested a four-year extension period until 31 December 2024.

2019 saw a sharp increase in the number of mine/ explosive remnants of war (ERW) casualties, particularly in the regions of Diffa and Tillabéry. The majority of incidents recorded in 2019 were caused by improvised mines.

The security situation has continued to deteriorate in recent years, in particular in the border areas with Burkina Faso, Mali, and Nigeria, and attacks on humanitarian and health workers were reported in 2019. A state of emergency was in force in affected areas. The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) supported the surgical treatment and physical rehabilitation of persons injured by mines/ERW. There has been no victim assistance program in the country since 2015.

Treaty status

Treaty status overview

In May 2020, Niger submitted a fourth Article 5 extension request for a period of four years until 31 December 2024.[2] In its request, Niger did not provide a detailed annual workplan, clearance outputs, or milestones.

The reason provided for not meeting its third deadline of 31 December 2020 was the lack of international assistance.[3] Both the Danish Demining Group (DDG) and Norwegian People’s Aid (NPA) reportedly offered to help the country to complete clearance, but Niger did not respond to either organization’s offer. As in its previous extension requests, Niger noted desert environment, insecurity, and a lack of funding as challenges for the implementation of its clearance obligations, along with the remote location of contamination and the need for a weekly military escort to carry out demining.[4]

Under its fourth clearance deadline extension request, Niger has stated that some US$1.1 million would be needed to fulfil its remaining Article 5 obligations, including $400,000 from the national budget and $700,000 to be mobilized from external donors.[5]

Management and coordination

Mine action management and coordination

Mine action management and coordination overview

The national mine action program is managed by the National Commission for the Collection and Control of Illicit Weapons (Commission Nationale pour la Collecte et le Contrôle des Armes Illicites, CNCCAI), which reports directly to the president. All demining has been carried out by Niger’s Armed Forces.

A mine action cluster was set up in 2018 with the participation of the United Nations (UN) and non-governmental organizations (NGOs).[6]

The CNCCAI coordinates a consultation framework for physical security and weapons and ammunitions management actors, which holds quarterly meetings.[7]

Legislation and standards

Niger reported that, as of November 2015, it had drafted national mine action standards (NMAS) in accordance with the International Mine Action Standards (IMAS). No information has been provided on whether the draft NMAS have been finalized and adopted.

Risk education management and coordination

Risk education was included in Niger’s 2009–2013 Mine Action Plan. Niger was planning to develop and implement a communication plan, train mine risk educators, and monitor and evaluate the implementation of the communication strategy.[8]

In its Article 7 report submitted in 2012, Niger indicated that the CNCCAI coordinated risk education activities.[9] Niger has not reported on risk education activities since 2012.

Victim assistance management and coordination

Victim assistance management and coordination overview[10]

Laws and policies

Persons with disabilities were eligible for free healthcare. Legislation mandates new government buildings to be accessible to persons with disabilities, but the law was not enforced. There were no specific regulations for physical accessibility for persons with disabilities to buildings, transportation, or education.[11] Humanity & Inclusion (HI) found that physical accessibility of infrastructures remained an issue in Diffa and Tillabéry regions.[12]

There is a requirement of a 5% employment quota of persons with disabilities in the public and private sectors.[13] Social stigma regarding disabilities however remained strong and a high percentage of persons with disabilities were forced into begging by their families.[14]

Niger stated that a law on equal opportunities was needed in order to address the gaps in the protection of persons with disabilities, and that such a law was in the process of being adopted as of February 2019.[15] Niger did not report any progress on the adoption of the law.

Impact

Contamination

Contamination overview[16]

Landmine contamination

Niger is contaminated with antivehicle mines and antipersonnel mines as a legacy of colonial occupation and as a result of insurgency, particularly in the north of the country. The extent of antipersonnel mine contamination is unclear although one mined area has been identified next to the Madama military base in the northeast of the country and covering less than 0.2km². Niger has previously reported clearing some areas adjacent to the Madama military base.

A further five areas were previously identified as suspected hazardous areas in the Agadez region, but Niger reported that non-technical and technical survey conducted in May 2014 had removed the suspicion of the presence of antipersonnel mines in these areas.[17]

Niger’s contamination includes other areas that contain only antivehicle mines, which are the result of rebellion in 1990–2000 as well as fighting in 2007 between the Nigerien army and a non-state armed group (NSAG), the Nigerien Justice Movement (Mouvement des Nigériens pour la Justice), and some splinter factions.

In its most recent Mine Ban Treaty Article 7 report, covering the period from January 2013 to April 2018, Niger reported that the region of Diffa has become difficult to operate in for humanitarian agencies because of the fear of mines, ERW, and improvised devices.[18] Tillabéry and Tahoua regions in western Niger were also affected by new contamination from a range of devices, including antivehicle mines, command-detonated devices, and pressure plate victim-operated IEDs.[19] In July 2020, Niger stated that improvised mines (victim-activated IEDs) were being used by NSAG in western Niger, and that it would report on this new contamination in its next Article 7 report.[20]

Casualties

Casualties overview[21]

Casualties in 2019: details

In 2019, the Monitor identified 54 mine/ERW casualties in Niger, a sharp increase from previous years: in 2015 eight casualties were reported, 15 in 2016, 14 in 2017, and 12 in 2018. The vast majority of incidents in 2019 were caused by improvised mines. The Diffa region, bordering Nigeria, and the Tillabéry region, bordering Burkina Faso and Mali, were the most affected.

Mine casualties recorded since 2015 were associated with intensifying activities by NSAG and indicated mines or improvised mines (victim-activated IEDs) as the cause.

From 1999 to 2019, The Monitor has recorded a total of 506 mine/ERW casualties, including 147 killed, 342 injured and 17 for whom the survival outcome was not known. As last reported in April 2014, the CNCCAI had reported a total of 400 mine/ERW casualties in Niger between 2007 and April 2014: 108 killed, 287 injured, five with unknown survival outcome.[22]

Addressing the impact

Mine action

Operators and service providers

Clearance operators

Clearance

Land release overview[23]

Land release: landmines

Niger reported clearance of 18,000m² through manual excavation in the area adjacent to the Madama military base in 2016–2020. A total of 323 antipersonnel mines were destroyed.[24] Clearance operations only took place between July 2019 and February 2020. No clearance was conducted between 2016 and the first half of 2019.[25]

It is unclear how much land was cleared in Madama from 2014 to 2016 with reports ranging from 19,697m² to full clearance of 39,304m².[26] During NPA’s monitoring mission in December 2017 reports of clearance were ranging from 29,000 m² to 39,304m².[27]

Risk education

Operators and service providers

Humanity & Inclusion (HI) reported conducting awareness-raising activities for civilian populations on the risks posed by ERW, small arms and light weapons and their ammunition in the Diffa region.[28]

In 2012, Niger reported that the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Geneva Call, HI and other stakeholders participated in developing a communication strategy on the risk posed by mines/ERW and conducted behavior change communication programs. With their support, the CNCCAI produced awareness-raising materials.[29] Niger has not provided an update on risk education activities since 2012.

United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) was planning to launch in 2020 risk education activities and training in Diffa, Tahoua, and Tillabéry, in collaboration with CNCCAI and NGOs, including Concern Worldwide, Cooperazione Internationale (COOPI), and Plan International.[30]

Victim assistance

Victim assistance providers and activities

Victim assistance operators[31]

Major developments in 2019

Niger has reported that there has been no victim assistance program in the country since 2015.[32] The security situation remained a concern, particularly in the border areas with Burkina Faso, Mali, and Nigeria.[33] The Diffa and Tillabéry regions have been the most affected by the deteriorating security situation. Attacks on health workers were reported in 2019 in both regions.[34]

Medical care and rehabilitation

Since January 2018, HI has worked on advancing the inclusion of persons with disabilities in humanitarian responses and development initiatives.[35]

In 2019, the ICRC supported two hospitals in Niamey, one in Diffa (until May 2019), and one in Tillabéry. These hospitals treated people injured along Niger’s borders with Mali and Nigeria.

Persons with disabilities received free physical rehabilitation services and assistive devices at two ICRC-supported centers in Niamey and Zinder. For a limited time in 2019, the ICRC run a mobile prosthetics clinic in Tillabéry.[36]

ICRC supported the provision of supplies and equipment to health facilities, including to one hospital in Agadez. It also provided first-aid training, free physical rehabilitation, transportation of patients with disabilities to access physical rehabilitation services, as well as capacity-building of physical rehabilitation personnel.[37]

Socio-economic and psychosocial inclusion

Persons with disabilities in Agadez, Diffa, and Tillabéry received funding and training from the ICRC to start livelihoods or set up small businesses.[38] The ICRC also provided support to organizations of persons with disabilities and social inclusion through support to the Paralympic committee.[39]

HI worked in the promotion of the inclusion of children with disabilities in Niger’s education system, through a West African regional project that also includes Benin, Burkina Faso, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Senegal, Sierra Leone, and Togo[40] HI provided support to the Nigerien Federation of Persons with Disabilities as well as local authorities in Niamey, Maradi, and Tahoua to promote inclusive development processes.[41]