Source : Sahel weather January 2025

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The news from Niger in January 2025 was marked by the country's departure from the ECOWAS zone, along with Mali and Burkina Faso. As of January 29, these three countries are no longer officially members of the common community space, thus confirming their anchorage in the ESA. This decision was well received by the people of Niger, so much so that thousands of people demonstrated in Niamey to celebrate Niger's exit from ECOWAS. Gathered at the mythical "Place de la concertation" in front of the National Assembly, the demonstrators were keen to show their support for the junta's historic decision. 

Meanwhile, on January 11, the press reported the kidnapping of a 73-year-old Austrian woman living in the Saharan city of Agadez. According to several sources, she had been threatened for some time by unidentified individuals. Armed individuals infiltrated her home, grabbed her and disappeared with her, according to eyewitness accounts. Many observers have accused the JNIM, which operates in the area with the same modus operandi. The terrorist organization, for its part, denied these accusations in a public statement. In fact, the al-Qaeda branch denies having played any role in the kidnapping of Eva Gretzmacher, a humanitarian actress and human rights defender for 30 years. The search for her is still underway, and support is growing.

Generally speaking, the security situation is increasingly worrying, especially in the north of the country, as are the rights and freedoms of citizens. On January 18, the editor-in-chief of the private channel Canal 3 was arrested and placed in police custody for "violating the rules of ethics and deontology". The Ministry of Communication decided to suspend the channel for broadcasting information on the performance of the current government. This suspension has been denounced by civil society and NGOs such as Reporter Sans Frontières, who see it as an abusive decision and are calling on the current regime to lift the sanctions.

On the diplomatic front, the situation does not seem to be going well. At the beginning of this month, tensions between Benin and Niger escalated with General Tiani's thunderous statements accusing his Beninese counterpart of serving as a rear base for terrorists and wanting to "destabilize" his country. Since these events, entry to and exit from the country have been increasingly filtered in order to further reinforce security. New rules were enacted with the adoption of the ordinance made public on January 13, 2025 by the Conseil national pour la sauvegarde de la patrie (National Council for the Safeguard of the Homeland), which governs the entry, stay and movement of foreigners in Niger. On the subject of migratory flows, more than 600 migrants were expelled from Libya to Niger on the night of January 3 to 4 by Libyan forces. This situation has exacerbated the migratory crisis, and has the public and authorities even more worried about the fate of these returning migrants.

On January 6, the President of the Conseil National pour la Sauvegarde de la Patrie (National Council for the Safeguard of the Homeland) signed a decree temporarily revoking the nationality of two people for various offences provided for and sanctioned by law. The individuals in question are suspected of "activities likely to disrupt public peace and security, production and dissemination of data likely to disrupt public order, and racist, regionalist, ethnic, religious and xenophobic statements".