Niger’s location at the crossroads of key trans-Sahelian routes has positioned it at the heart of migratory flows for decades. The country’s role as a transit hub for migrants heading north towards Libya with the aim of reaching Europe has also attracted the focus of extensive international efforts to curb irregular migration.

This event will present the main findings of the Libya and Niger country-focused research reports covering shifts in human smuggling dynamics since 2023 and offer a discussion on their implications for irregular migratory flows on the central and western mediterranean routes.

In Niger, the July 2023 coup led to a number of significant shifts affecting human smuggling dynamics, the most profound of which was the repeal of the 2015 law criminalizing human smuggling. Despite persisting coup-related border closures that have hampered movements of West African migrants to Niger, migratory flows through Niger have increased and human smuggling dynamics have been reshaped.

In Libya, in a context of unstable political status quo, hybrid smuggling – whereby people make use of a mixture of regular and irregular means to travel – has proven resilient in the face of several significant shocks.

Panelists

Rupert Horsley, Global Initiative against Transnational Organized Crime

Alice Fereday, Global Initiative against Transnational Organized Crime

Moderator

Tarek Megerisi, Senior Policy Fellow, European Council on Foreign Relations

This event is based on the recently published report series: Human smuggling and trafficking ecosystems – North Africa and the Sahel covering changing dynamics in Libya, Tunisia, Morocco, Niger, Chad, Sudan and Mali in 2023.