Niger has long been a country of origin as well as of transit. More recently, there has been a steady flow of return migration as well as evacuations from North Africa. As international pressure (and financing) to manage irregular migration in the country grows, concerns are rising that increased numbers of migrants, asylum seekers, and refugees (including families and unaccompanied children) will be placed in immigration detention. As the GDP notes, countries that have received financial assistance from the EU and EU members seeking to prevent irregular migration and to improve migration management have seen substantial growth in the use of immigration detention. In this submission to the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child, the GDP urges restraint in the use of detention, and lists key questions regarding the country’s immigration detention regime—particularly regarding the placement of children in detention—that Nigerien authorities should be asked to address. Read the full submission here.
