From the 19th to 25th July, an assessment mission of the migratory routes in Northern Niger done by the  the International Organisation of Migration (IOM) revealed that, since April 2017, more than 1000 migrants were saved during IOM search and rescue operations.

The assessment was conducted with the aim of improving migrant rescues and assistance on the migratory routes in the Ténéré desert, located between Niger and Libya. Whilst covering over 1,400 kilometers and monitoring changes in migratory routes, IOM and the Niger’s Department of Civil Protection rescued more than 150 migrants in distress.  In one of the latest rescue missions, IOM staff saved 23 Gambian and Senegalese migrants who had been abandoned by their drivers.

From the  assessment, it appeared that since January, more than 60,000 individuals had entered Niger. At the two flow monitoring points in Séguedine and Arlit, only half that number was counted as leaving. The numbers revealed the need for more monitoring points, in order to address the trend  of smugglers using more dangerous routes.  

The rescue operations of IOM are an integral part of two projects: the Migrant Resources and Response Mechanism (MRRM), developed by IOM Niger and financed by the European Union, and the Migrants Rescue and Assistance in Agadez Region project, funded by the Netherlands. To save an increasing number of human lives, it is fundamental to understand the network between trafficking and smuggling, implement new flow monitoring points, increase the presence of the IOM in remote areas, and to provide assistance and alternatives to migrants.

To know more, read:

http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=57328#.WZVx5ncjG1u
https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2016/dec/15/eu-claims-success-curbing-migration-niger-scepticism-meps-international-organisation-for-migration
https://www.oxfam.org/en/perilous-migration-across-desert-niger-africas-hidden-story