Your information needs on the migration route, at the heart of our interventions!!!
Important to understand: The NGO IRC is a humanitarian organization linked to the principles of Humanism, Neutrality, Impartiality, and Independence. Our actions aim to alleviate the suffering of people in distress. As a result, our intervention is limited to providing safe, reliable, and useful information to enable migrants to easily access available assistance services, without wanting to influence their decisions.
I'm going to take the migration route, what do you advise me?
Are you one of those people who want to have information related to the migration road? on the different assistance services that migrants can access according to their positions? on possible dangers and risks?
In this article, you can find all the assistance services that intervene in Niger in the context of mixed migration.
NB: Humanitarian organizations working on mixed migration in Agadez often encounter difficulties in reaching as many migrants as possible because of the bypass routes that are emerging day by day. A situation arising from the provisions of Law 2015-036 which criminalizes the smuggling of migrants and thus pushes migrants to travel by taking riskier routes, often dangerous and difficult to access for humanitarian organizations. Moreover, most of these routes are also frequented by bandits and other criminals who intercept migrants in order to strip them of their properties. Added to this is the risk of accidents, vehicle breakdowns or abandonment of migrants. Indeed, some smugglers choose the right desert environment to ask for additional costs from migrants at risk of being abandoned. Climatic conditions are not always favorable for a person who already has to face thirst and hunger.
ENTERING AND STAYING IN NIGER
The city of Agadez is a migratory crossroads for Sub-Saharans heading to the Maghreb
It is easy for foreigners to stay in Agadez during their migratory journey as well as to cross the other borders of Niger. All you have to do is to have your travel documents in your possession. Through the Protocol of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) on Free Movement, nationals of ECOWAS countries "have the right to enter, carry out and settle in the territory of the Member States" for a maximum period of 90 days (3 months) provided that they have a valid travel document and international vaccination certificates.
For non-ECOWAS nationals: Passport, Visa, Vaccination record
To enter Niger the traveler must be in possession of a passport valid for at least 6 months.
To enter and stay in Niger for a well-defined period, an entry visa to Niger is mandatory for foreign nationals outside ECOWAS. Whether the visa is short-stay or long-stay, the applicant must normally submit a file to the embassy or consulate of Niger. It is also possible to apply for a visa online on the website https://www.visa-office.fr/visas/visa-niger/.
The international vaccination record is a travel document. Its presentation is required by the health services of the country in which one wishes to enter in order to verify that the traveler has been vaccinated against certain diseases. To enter Niger, it is mandatory to be vaccinated against yellow fever.
For ECOWAS nationals: identity document and vaccination record
For ECOWAS nationals, besides the international vaccination certificate, you will just need an ECOWAS biometric identity card or an ECOWAS travel diary.
The ECOWAS Biometric Identity Card or the ECOWAS Travel Carnet?
Have you ever wondered about these two documents?
No major difference, the ECOWAS travel diary and the ECOWAS biometric identity card refer to the same document. The same one that allows every citizen of member countries to travel freely between ECOWAS countries.
Indeed, the travel diary is the first travel document instituted by ECOWAS countries in 1985 to allow residents to travel freely.
But from 2014, the Member States put forward the idea of having a uniform document that meets international standards on the movement of persons. For example, the ECOWAS biometric identity card was introduced to serve as a travel document within the ECOWAS area.
However, some states are still at the travel diary stage. If this is the case in your country, don't panic! The ECOWAS travel diary is still relevant, and you can normally circulate with it freely.
For more information on the ECOWAS travel diary in Niger, click here https://cutt.ly/TIse6QC.
For long stays: The residence permit
If you stay in Agadez for a period of more than three (3) months, you need a residence permit. It is a document provided by the Nigerien administration that authorizes a person wishing to settle in Niger.
The Nigerien residence permit is valid for 1 year, renewable 3 times and allows its holder to stay on Nigerien soil without being worried.
To know everything about the residence permit, we invite you to click this link https://cutt.ly/pUGHNV8
Although the documents facilitate travel, it should be noted that some passengers still do not have the full documents and to escape police control use bypass routes.
Among these passengers are migrants who want to know the assistance services available according to the different axes from the municipality of Agadez.
THE MAIN MIGRATION ROUTES IN THE AGADEZ REGION AND THE DIFFERENT SERVICES AVAILABLE
From Agadez we distinguish the following ways:
TO ALGERIA
- Agadez-Arlit-Assamaka-Tamanrasset by the national road
This route is the least risky and requires the migrant to be in good standing by obtaining a visa to return to Algeria. To travel through this route, the traveler needs to be in good standing in order to pass the various Nigerien checkpoints without being worried. Thus, the person who travels whether he is a migrant or not will need his travel documents in full which can vary between entry into Niger to entry into Algeria.
Algeria and Libya are not part of ECOWAS, so the biometric card or ECOWAS travel diary are not enough to cross the Algerian border. To return to Algeria, the person must have:
- A valid passport
- A visa for Algeria (mandatory even for short stays)
- A certificate of entry into Algeria
These documents can be obtained at the embassies of Algeria. This is also possible online through thes links: https://www.visa-office.fr/visas/visa-algerie/ and https://www.allianz-voyage.fr/conseils-voyage/voyager-a-l-etranger/passeport-algerie.html.
- Agadez-Arlit-Tchingalen-AdrarBouss-in the mountain-well of Tchinbarakaten
This is a very dangerous route where we find Libyans and Algerians to whom, the carriers in a form of modern slavery, resell the passengers at Djanet or Gath.
The road that leads to Tchinbarakaten was once one of the most used routes by passengers wishing to reach Algeria without going through Assamaka.
The tightening of control at the Libyan borders encourages some passengers bound for Libya to adapt their route through Djanet in Algeria, and then reach their destination cities by crossing the Algerian-Libyan border.
Everything is played out in the Tenere of Taffassasset, a hyper-arid space between the North Aïr and the West Kawar. It is a dangerous zone where the ground is so flat that one cannot orientate oneself after midday. Most of the journey is done here at night with the stars as a reference.
- Agadez-Arlit-Assamaka-Inguizzam-Tamanrasset with bypass of the police station.
Assamaka is the last Nigerien city before the border with Algeria, while Inguizzam and Tamanarasset are the first two Algerian villages. From Arlit, some transporters try to escape police control by bypassing the Assamaka checkpoint and reaching the villages of Inguizzam and Tamanarasset. A practice that often puts passengers at risk. Indeed, the bypass roads are frequented by armed bandits and the dangers are great in case of vehicle breakdowns.
The lack of security on these routes, in particular by the Defence and Security Forces (FDS) makes it difficult for migrants on these routes to access humanitarian aid. Nevertheless, they can access humanitarian assistance fromAssamaka and Arlit.
ASSAMAKA
You are a migrant leaving or turned away from Algeria and you find yourself in Assamaka? Be aware that from Assamaka, several structures come to the rescue of migrants with health care, clothes, and blankets, or to contact your friends and family, etc. If you also want to go home but you can't afford it, you can get voluntary return assistance.
- MSF
In Assamaka, the organization Médecins Sans Frontières helps migrants (external and internal) turned away from Algeria through:
- Free medical care at the CSI level for all migrants (external and internal) and the indigenous population (children aged 0-15 years and pregnant women).
- Mobile clinics at the Dune (a small village, market that serves as a gathering place for migrants turned back from the zero point and is some 3 km from Assamaka). Here too you can find MSF teams that refer urgent cases (most often those that are not part of its mandate) to its partners in Arlit or Agadez.
- Protection activities specifically of assistance in migrant kits for migrants in pedestrian convoys, the collection of migrants' testimonies and, if necessary, referencing
- Mental health activities through psychological support, psychological first aid, recreational activities, focus groups and referral of psychiatric cases.
Focal Point: You can join this organization in Assamaka by calling 81 87 23 02.
MSF also provides migrants in distress in the desert with a toll-free call line: 80 11 44 44
- CRN
The Nigerien Red Cross (CRN) intervenes in Assamaka by granting minutes of communication to Nigerien migrants repatriated from Algeria and international so that they can hear from their loved ones with focal points at bus stations and IOM centers for phone call needs.
For more information on the Restoration of Family Links (RLF) in Agadez, you can go to the article through this link https://cutt.ly/8E1kUyP.
Focal Point: You can contact this organization in Assamaka by calling 90 75 74 86.
- IOM
The International Organization for Migration (IOM) supports applicants who wish to return to their country of origin through its voluntary return program which includes assistance in food and non-food items, health care, etc.
In Assamaka, IOM is responding for the benefit of international and domestic returnees. The organization runs the voluntary return program that allows migrants who wish to do so to return to their countries and receive assistance to reintegrate into their homes.
For more information on IOM's activities in Agadez, we recommend this article https://cutt.ly/eE1bpp5.
- APS
The transnational network Alarm Phone Sahara (APS) intervenes in Assamaka with a sub-office for the monitoring of the migratory flow particularly the expulsions from Algeria.
For more questions about APS' activities, you can visit its website at https://alarmephonesahara.info/fr/propos/qui-est-alarme-phone-sahara-aps.
Focal points: the Assamaka whistleblower team can be reached at (+227) 90 51 21 28 & 90 91 83 31.
- APBE
If in Agadez, the actions of the NGO Action For the Well-Being (APBE) are intended for asylum seekers and refugees, in Assamaka it provides care for cases of Gender-Based Violence (GBV).
This allows migrant women who are victims of GBV to be taken care of as soon as they arrive in Assamaka.
- UNICEF with the one-stop shop for children on the move
As part of the implementation of its project entitled "Protection of Children in Situations of Mobility", the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) comes to the bedside of unaccompanied and separated children (usually those returned from Algeria) through counters at police stations.
The UNICEF support component consists of medical care (including psychosocial support), food, etc.
ARLIT
Are you in Arlit? you can access several services implemented by humanitarian organizations on the ground.
- MSF
MSF provides access to free nursing and medical care at the Boukoki 1 Integrated Health Centre (IHC) to ensure the availability and free care of all migrants. Children aged 0 to 15 and pregnant women from the host community are cared for.
In addition, mobile clinics are also deployed in Guidan Daka (gold processing site) several protection activities such as the collection of migrants' testimonies and referencing are implemented.
Mental health activities through psychological support, psychological first aid, recreational activities, focus groups and referral of psychiatric cases
Focal point: You can find this organization in Arlit by calling 89 38 75 82.
- CRF
MSF is not the only humanitarian organization that intervenes in Arlit, the French Red Cross (CRF) also intervenes through medical, psychosocial, and psychological care.
The CRF also aids in brothels for the benefit of sex workers.
- CRN
The Nigerien Red Cross (CRN) in partnership with the French Red Cross (CRF) and the International Committee of the Red Crescent (ICRC) implements a number of activities. This is medical, psychosocial, and psychological care.
Apart from health care assistance, the CRN makes it possible to take advantage of another offer by providing them with telephone lines to communicate with relatives regardless of the destination.
Moreover, in Arlit, the CRN has two (2) kiosks, one at the front of the Sonef transport company and the other at the level of the bus terminal.
These kiosks are open on Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays from 9am to12pm in the mornings and 4pm to5pm in the afternoons.
The Nigerien Red Cross also sets up a mobile team at the IOM-Arlit centre every Monday and Thursday.
Focal point: You can contact this organization in Arlit by calling 95 63 62 32.
For more information on the Restoration of Promoted Family Links in Agadez, you can go to the article through this link https://cutt.ly/8E1kUyP.
- IOM
In Arlit, manages the voluntary return program for international migrants wishing to return to their countries. IOM also ensures the transport of Nigerien returnees from Algeria to Agadez.
- APS
APS has a whistleblower in Arlit, that raises awareness among migrants and documents their life stories as they travel from the country of origin to the countries of transit. Its intermediate position makes it possible to direct migrants in difficulty to partners for health assistance needs.
Focal point: you can join this organization in Arlit at (+227) 96 81 73 30.
- CRS
As part of the PROMISA project, Catholic Relief Services (CRS) provides the following services to migrants passing through Arlit:
- Direct assistance by cash vouchers (food, NFI, hygiene products),
- Psychosocial assistance,
- Legal assistance,
- The referencing to a health care need at the Red Cross and at COOPI for a psychological care.
CRS Focal Point: You can find this organization in Arlit by calling 85 45 47 66.
TO LIBYA
- Agadez-Arbre du Ténéré (well of hope) -Ashigour (artesian well) -Dirkou- Séguédine (only village of civilians) -Dao Timi- Madama-Toumo-Gatrone-Oubari-Sebha.
- Agadez-Dirkou-Séguédine-Chirfa-Djado-Djanet.
All the roads that lead to Libya are extremely dangerous. By taking this route from Séguédine the risks of perishing, of being abandoned by the drivers under false pretexts are very great.
Despite the dangers, a number of humanitarian organizations are present to provide assistance to migrants.
ANNAY AND SEGUEDINE
- MSF
In order to provide medical support to people in need, Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) supports the two (2) CSIs in the localities of Annay and Séguédine. Support to ensure free care for migrants (internal and external) and the indigenous population (children aged 0-15 and pregnant women).
MSF is also deploying mobile clinics in the village of Lattey.
Mental health activities through psychological support, psychological first aid, recreational activities, focus groups and referral of psychiatric cases.
Focal point: You can find this organization in Annay and Séguédine by calling 81 87 23 06.
- CRN
The Nigerien Red Cross (CRN) intervenes in Siguidine by granting minutes of communication to international migrants so that they can hear from their loved ones with a focal point at Siguidine station.
He can be reached at 96 98 37 85 / 92 63 44 62.
DIRKOU
- MSF
In Dirkou city, MSF intervenes at the level of brothels through mobile clinics by strengthening the availability of free care for migrants.
Mental health activities through psychological support, psychological first aid, recreational activities, focus groups and referral of psychiatric cases.
The organization is expanding its activities in areas such as protection (collection of migrants' testimonies, assistance in kits) and a search and rescue system for migrants lost or abandoned in the desert through a telephone line, it is a toll-free number which is: 80 11 44 44.
Focal Point: You can find this organization in Dirkou by calling 81 87 23 06
- CRN
In Dirkou also, the Nigerien Red Cross (CRN) allows international migrants to hear from their loved ones through minutes of communication with a focal point at the bus station and IOM centre in Dirkou for telephone call needs.
He can be reached at 96 98 37 85 / 92 63 44 62.
-APS
In Dirkou and Séguédine, APS organizes awareness-raising events related to the Covid19 pandemic and risky travel.
Focal points: In Dirkou,you can contact (+227) 92 76 07 10
In Siguidine you can contact (+227) 90 08 51 90
- IOM
In addition to MSF, iom intervenes in Dirkou with community stabilization and assisted voluntary return activities.
BILMA
- APS
In Bilma, it is now necessary to count on the patrol and rescue activities carried out by Alarm Phone Sahara which has a mobile team that patrols along the migratory routes in search of people in need of assistance.
APS has a whistleblower in Latai (a locality located in the department of Bilma) to inquire about cases of migrants stranded or abandoned in the vicinity.
Focal points: in Bilma you can contact (+227) 98 92 79 87,
in Lataï you can contact (+227) 85 16 07 58.
TABELOT
- MSF
For people passing through this axis, there is Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) which supports the Integrated Health Centre (IHC) in Tabelot with MSF medical staff and medicines. Care services for migrants are 100% free.
Médecins Sans Frontières is deploying mobile clinics in the localities of Aouzougar, Kori kantana, Fasso and Guidan Daka (Tabelot gold processing site) where care is provided to migrants transiting through these sites.
Mental health activities through psychological support, psychological first aid, recreational activities, focus groups and referral of psychiatric cases
MSF is also stepping up protection activities (collecting testimonies, identifying, and referring protection cases), sweeping the roads and rescuing migrants abandoned in the desert.
Focal point: You can find this organization in Tabelot by calling 99 59 60 44.
For any questions :
- Contact us on our Facebook page Sheega.info, Monday to Thursday from 8am to 5.45pm and Fridays from 8am to 1pm.
Sources:
- https://www.sante.gouv.sn/sites/default/files/Demander_carnet_vaccination.pdf
- https://journals.openedition.org/com/7427?lang=en
- https://www.iom.int/sites/g/files/tmzbdl486/files/jahia/webdav/site/myjahiasite/shared/shared/mainsite/microsites/IDM/workshops/free_movement_of_persons_18190607/presentation_sanoh.pdf
- https://www.pasteur.fr/fr/centre-medical/preparer-son-voyage/niger