An IOM survey into the reintegration needs of many tens of
thousands of migrants who have returned to Niger from Libya
highlights the urgency of providing comprehensive reintegration
assistance to returnees and their families, who prior to the Libyan
crisis relied on remittances for their economic survival.

The survey establishes that the return to Niger of some 90,000
mostly young uneducated male migrants has had an overall negative
impact on the lives of hundreds of thousands of individuals who are
living in regions affected by chronic food insecurity and
underemployment.

The survey notes that 86 per cent of the returnees say they had
remitted enough money to support five family members in Niger.
Their return effectively means that remittances have now dried up,
with often dire consequences for vulnerable families living in
drought and food insecurity prone areas.

In the central region of Tahoua, which has seen the majority of
returns, the report indicates that household food insecurity has
been exacerbated not only by the sharp drop in remittances but also
because an overwhelming majority of returnees have neither jobs to
go to nor the financial means to engage in self-employment
activities.

In several regions such as Zinder, Maradi and Diffa, the return
of substantial numbers of often destitute migrants has exacerbated
chronic poverty, which prior to the Libyan conflict was said to
affect 53 per cent of the population.

In the north-western region of Tillabéri, which survives
on small-scale subsistence farming, herding and commerce, those
returns have aggravated extreme poverty and hunger which is
affecting more than half of the 2.5 million inhabitants throughout
the country threatened with food insecurity this year.

"Most of the returnees say they urgently need financial or
in-kind assistance to help them resume a productive life," says
Abibatou Wane, IOM's Chief of Mission in Niger. "But we need to go
beyond providing direct reintegration assistance to the returnees.
We also need to support communities that have been made even more
vulnerable by the Libyan conflict and simply cannot cope
anymore."

According to the report, 33 per cent of migrants from Niger
returned from the capital Tripoli, 20 per cent from the southern
Libyan city of Sebha, 18 per cent from the coastal town of 
Misrata and the remainder from the cities of Zaouia, Zliten, Al
Khums, Benghazi, Brak, Jufra and Sirte.

Almost 41 per cent of the returnees said they were employed in
the construction sector, 23 per cent in agriculture and the
remainder as drivers, mechanics, petty traders or dockers in the
informal sector of the Libyan economy.

When asked what activity they would like to undertake in Niger,
57 per cent of the returnees said they wanted to work in
agriculture, 23 per cent in trading, 8 per cent in animal husbandry
and the remainder in construction and trade.

"This survey underlines the need to put in place a variety of
reintegration options. In the short term, these could range from
in-kind assistance to small credit to help the returnees and their
families and in the long term, to put in place initiatives that
help stabilize communities," says IOM's Wane. "This is particularly
important at a time when the authorities are warning of increased
crop failure due to erratic rains and insect attacks."

In response to those pressing needs, IOM has launched two pilot
reintegration projects to assist a limited number of returnees from
Niger and neighbouring countries. The programmes, funded by the
European Commission and the Italian government aim to provide the
returnees with the necessary support to help them set up
income-generating activities and establish cooperatives.
Partnerships have also been established with partner NGOs to
provide counselling and mentoring of beneficiaries.

For more information, please call:

Abibatou Wane

IOM Niger

Tel: +227 90 54 32 41

E-mail: "mailto:awane@iom.int">awane@iom.int