The United Nations Office at Geneva
Multimedia Newsroom
The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) sounded the alarm on Tuesday about the “crisis of uncertainty” that is developing in Niger following last month's military takeover.
UNHCR Representative in Niger, Emmanuel Gignac, warned that the ongoing political situation could develop “humanitarian consequences,” with aid and protection services unable to reach scores of vulnerable displaced people.
Speaking in Geneva Mr. Gignac said that although attacks by non-state armed groups existed before the 26 July military takeover, especially near the Mali and Burkina Faso borders, since then, they have “led to further displacement.”
According to UNHCR, Niger is home to over 700,000 forcibly displaced people: 350,000 refugees and asylum-seekers, and 350,000 internally displaced people.
“In the past 30 days…we observed an additional 20,000 new internally displaced people," the UNHCR spokesperson said.
Additionally, population movements continue around the country's borders, albeit on a “modest scale”, with more than 2,500 people seeking asylum in Niger in the first two weeks of August, coming from Nigeria, Mali, and Burkina Faso.
Mr. Gignac expressed concern over the effects of sanctions imposed on the country by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), which do not include any exemptions for humanitarian aid.
He explained that the sanctions kicked in at a “fragile” time of the year – the so-called “période de soudure”, which marks the transition between agricultural seasons and before the rainy season fully sets in.
According to UNHCR, already high food and commodity prices surged further after sanctions were introduced and appear set to continue rising due to the closure of borders with ECOWAS countries.
Mr. Gignac stressed that the agency’s stocks of essential items for about 5,000 families are only expected to last for three to five months.
Calling for a lifting of sanctions for humanitarian aid, he pointed out that lack of access to food and “the scarcity of goods in general” will lead to a number of protection risks. These include “early marriages, sexual violence, trafficking and exploitation”.
In July, UNHCR reported 255 protection incidents including kidnapping, gender-based violence and domestic violence. The UN agency's teams witnessed a 50 per cent increase in such incidents between 26 and 31 July, compared to previous weeks.
The UNHCR representative underscored that Niger had been “a hub” for asylum-seekers and a migration route towards North Africa and Libya in particular, and that these people are “in need of international protection.”
Moreover, the security situation, fuel shortages and disruptions to the UN Humanitarian Air Service (UNHAS) have seriously impacted aid workers’ mobility, keeping them from reaching those most in need, he said.
The agency’s $135.7 million appeal for Niger remains only 39 per cent funded.
STORY: Protection crisis in Niger - UNHCR
DURATION (TRT): 03'34''
SOURCE: UNTV CH
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH
ASPECT RATIO: 16:9
DATELINE: 29 AUGUST 2023, GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
FORMAT: HYBRID PRESS BRIEFING
SHOTLIST
- Exterior wide shot, United Nations flag flying.
- Wide shot of panel.
- SOUNDBITE: (ENGLISH) Emmanuel Gignac, UNHCR Representative in Niger: “It is a political crisis. It's not a humanitarian crisis per se. It could develop into or have humanitarian consequences. It is already starting to have some. And until such a time there is a solution, this crisis will continue to create uncertainties.”
- Attendee behind screen.
- SOUNDBITE: (ENGLISH) Emmanuel Gignac, UNHCR Representative in Niger: “We're concerned by attacks by non-state armed groups, which existed, of course, before the 26 July coup. Whether or not they've increased, it's too early to say that. There has been some important attacks in the course, I mean, post 26 July, and they've, of course, led to further displacement.”
- Mid shot of attendees at briefing.
- SOUNDBITE: (ENGLISH) Emmanuel Gignac, UNHCR Representative in Niger: “It is a crisis about uncertainty. So that's why it's very difficult to say what will happen. It's not that we have witnessed a massive movement of people and then, you know, we're trying to see how it will evolve, etc… And we're trying, we know, we're assessing the needs that we're able to already call for specific… so we're more here to call for a lifting of, or exceptions, of sanctions for humanitarian aid.”
- Wide shot of attendees.
- SOUNDBITE: (ENGLISH) Emmanuel Gignac, UNHCR Representative in Niger: “Clearly, it is coming at a time we call in French or in Niger “période de soudure” , which is this transition between one agricultural season and the other, and right before the rainy season sets in. And that's always been a fragile period.”
- Side view of attendees.
- SOUNDBITE: (ENGLISH) Emmanuel Gignac, UNHCR Representative in Niger: “The fact that people don't have access to, as they used to have to food commodities and the scarcity of goods in general will lead to a number of protection risks that will develop. You know, we're talking about early marriages, sexual violence, trafficking and exploitation.”
- Close shot of attendees typing.
- SOUNDBITE: (ENGLISH) Emmanuel Gignac, UNHCR Representative in Niger: “In the past 30 days, I think we observed an additional 20,000 new internally displaced people. That's an example. At a lesser scale, about two and a half thousand refugees, mainly from Mali and Burkina, some from Nigeria, also have been entering the country seeking asylum.”
- Close shot of attendee behind screens showing panellists.
- SOUNDBITE: (ENGLISH) Emmanuel Gignac, UNHCR Representative in Niger: “We’re of course concerned about the future when the situation is uncertain. Niger, until now, was a hub for refugees from, as I said, Mali, Nigeria mainly, but also Burkina. It's also a migration route towards North Africa and Libya in particular. And we do have asylum seekers or people in need of international protection.”
- Wide view from above and behind panellists.
- Mid-view of attendees.
- Mid-view of attendees.
Similar Stories
1
1
1
Edited News | WHO
No evacuation order given before Kamal Adwan Hospital strike, says WHO
One of the last partially functional health centres in northern Gaza was reportedly hit again overnight into Friday by several strikes, leaving four health workers among the casualties and the dead, according to the UN World Health Organization (WHO).
2
1
2
Edited News , Press Conferences | OCHA
More than 280,000 people have been uprooted in northwest Syria in a matter of days following the sudden and massive offensive into Government-controlled areas led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), which is sanctioned by the Security Council as a terrorist group.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
UN Human Rights Chief Volker Türk has called on the Georgian authorities to respect and protect the rights to freedoms of expression and peaceful assembly following several nights of protests that were marred by violence, and dispersed using disproportionate, and in some cases unnecessary, force by the police in the capital, Tbilisi.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk said today he was extremely concerned about the recent escalation in hostilities in northwest Syria, which further compounds the suffering endured by millions of civilians.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , WHO , OCHA
Syria escalation: Civilians face deadly attacks, health care in distress and aid access compromised
The ongoing escalation of violence in northwest Syria linked to the wider conflict in Gaza and Lebanon has left civilians dead and injured, hospitals “overwhelmed” and attacks on healthcare on the rise, the UN warned on Tuesday.
2
1
4
Press Conferences , Edited News | OCHA
Multiple unending conflicts, climate change and a glaring disregard for long-established international humanitarian law are set to leave a staggering 305 million people in need of lifesaving assistance next year, the UN’s top aid official warned on Wednesday.
Embargo Wednesday, 4 December 2024 at 0600 CET / 0000 ET
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
The UN Rights Office on Friday warned about the plight of civilians in Ukraine after further attacks on the country’s energy infrastructure.
1
1
1
Edited News | ITU
An international panel has been set up to protect undersea communications cables that are crucial for international trade and security, the UN International Telecommunication Union (ITU) said on Friday. The creation of the International Advisory Body for Submarine Cable Resilience comes amid an ongoing investigation into the severing of two fibre optic cables in the Baltic Sea, in less than 24 hours between 17 and 18 November.
2
1
2
Press Conferences , Edited News | ITU
An estimated 5.5 billion people have access to the internet in 2024, an increase of 227 million people based on revised estimates for 2023, the UN specialized agency for telecommunications, ITU, said on Wednesday.
2
1
2
Press Conferences , Edited News | UNAIDS
Launch of World AIDS Day Report 2024—Take The Rights Path
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
A joint report issued this morning by the UN Human Rights Office and the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) paints a disturbing picture of the media landscape in the country since the Taliban takeover. UN Human Rights Chief Volker Türk says.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR
UN human rights chief Volker Türk lent his weight to growing ceasefire calls in Lebanon on Tuesday, amid reports that the senior Israeli cabinet members were due to meet on a deal to end more than a year of conflict with Hezbollah militants, sparked by the war in Gaza