The business of poverty migration in Niger

The European Union is expanding cooperations with Mediterranean countries from Tunisia to Egypt and Lebanon in a bid to stop boat departures from migrants. But pressure is building up in the Sahel since Niger’s military government re-opened the land route for Migrants to Liba and Algeria. Niger had banned in 2015 under pressure from the EU any help to migrants north of the smuggler hub of Agadez, effectively closing the route. Now with strained relations with the EU since a military coup in July 2023, Niamey has decided to legalize cross-border traffic again. More than 160,000 migrants have left Agadez for Libya and Algeria in the January-April period, UN estimates show. Most migrants are workers from Niger seeking only seasonal employment in Libya but others such as Nigerians will be trying to reach Italy via Libya.