Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2020, published 109th ILC session (2021)

Forced Labour Convention, 1930 (No. 29) - Niger (Ratification: 1961)
Protocol of 2014 to the Forced Labour Convention, 1930 - Niger (Ratification: 2015)

Articles 1(1) and 2(1) of the Convention, and Article 1(1) of the Protocol of 2014 to the Forced Labour Convention, 1930. Effective measures to combat trafficking in persons. 1. Systematic and coordinated action. The Committee previously noted that the framework to combat trafficking in persons, established by Ordinance No. 2010-086 of 16 December 2010 respecting action to combat trafficking in persons (hereinafter the Trafficking Ordinance), is implemented through the National Coordinating Commission to Combat Trafficking in Persons (CNCLTP) and the National Agency for Action to Combat Trafficking in Persons and the Smuggling of Migrants (ANLTP/TIM). The Agency is responsible for the implementation of the National Plan of Action to combat trafficking in persons for the period 2014-2019, which covers six strategic areas. The Government indicates in its report that a new plan of action to combat trafficking in persons and the smuggling of migrants, covering the period 2020-2024, is currently being approved. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the results achieved in the context of the implementation of the various parts of the National Plan of Action to combat trafficking in persons for the period 2014-2019, the evaluation reports and activities undertaken in this respect by the CNCLTP and the ANLTP/TIM. It requests the Government indicate the objectives set out in the Plan of Action, the measures envisaged for their achievement and the manner in which the CNCLTP and the ANLTP/TIM ensure that systematic action is taken by the competent authorities. Lastly, it requested the Government to indicate the manner in which employers’ and workers’ organizations are consulted.

2. Article 2 of the Protocol. Prevention. Awareness-raising, education and information (clauses (a) and (b)). The Committee observes that the National Plan of Action to combat trafficking in persons includes a section on prevention. In this respect, it notes the information provided by the Government on the activities organized by the ANLTP/TIM with a view to the provision of information and awareness-raising on the issue of trafficking in persons, and particularly the public conferences and debates, televised debates and the activities undertaken within the framework of the commemoration of the National Day of Mobilization against Trafficking in Persons in Niger, which was held for the fifth time on 28 September 2019. The Committee requests the Government to continue providing information on the activities undertaken throughout the national territory to educate and inform the population on the issue of trafficking in persons. It also requests the Government to indicate the measures adopted to target vulnerable persons who could become victims of trafficking, such as migrants in transit through Niger who wish to reach North Africa and Europe.

Furthermore, noting that section 6 of the Trafficking Ordinance provides for the regular collection and publication of statistics on trafficking in persons, the Committee requests the Government to indicate the measures taken to ensure the collection of such data and, where possible, to provide a copy.

Strengthening of inspection services (clause (c )). The Committee takes due note of the Government’s indication that the ANLTP/TIM is planning to strengthen the capacities of labour inspectors with a view to improving the detection of cases of trafficking and labour exploitation. The Committee requests the Government to describe the measures adopted for this purpose.

Protection of migrants during the recruitment process (clause (d )). The Government indicates that a bilateral agreement has been concluded between Niger and Saudi Arabia under the terms of which Saudi Arabian recruitment agencies have to offer a model contract to migrant workers from Niger and establish training centres to familiarize them with national migration procedures, customs and language. The Committee requests the Government to indicate whether agreements of this type have been negotiated and signed with other countries. It also requests it to indicate whether there are recruitment agencies on the national territory which place workers from Niger abroad, the manner in which they are regulated and, where appropriate, the manner in which they raise the awareness of prospective migrants concerning the risks related to migration.

3. Article 3 of the Protocol. Identification and protection of victims. The Committee notes that the ANLTP/TIM can receive information from individuals and associations concerning cases of trafficking. It analyses the information and, where necessary, draws up a report setting out the evidence which it submits to the Public Prosecutor of the Republic (section 12 of Decree No. 2012-083 of 2012 determining the organization, composition and operating procedures of the ANLTP/TIM). The Government adds that the ANLTP/TIM is engaged in drawing up the standard operating procedures for the identification, registration, assistance and support for victims of trafficking, including forced labour. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the number of potential cases of trafficking brought to the attention of the ANLTP/TIM and the number of those cases referred to the Public Prosecutor of the Republic. It also requests the Government indicate the manner in which the ANLTP/TIM collaborates with civil society organizations that are active in this field. Lastly, noting that the standard operational procedures for the identification, registration, assistance and provision of support for victims are an important tool for strengthening the capacity of the competent authorities to identify victims of trafficking and provide them with adequate protection, the Committee hopes that the Government will take the necessary measures to ensure that these procedures are adopted and disseminated broadly to these authorities.

The Committee notes that the Trafficking Ordinance includes a series of provisions setting out protection measures for victims, including accommodation, legal, medical and psychological assistance, repatriation, financial support and access to employment (Chapter VI). These measures are ordered by the prosecutor following the opening of the judicial investigation. Section 59 of the Ordinance envisages the provision of assistance to victims abroad who are nationals of Niger. The Government adds that a reception centre for victims of trafficking has been established in Zinder (July 2019) and that two others are planned in Niamey and Agadez. The Committee requests the Government to provide further information on the operation of the reception centre in Zinder and on the number of persons who have been received there; and to indicate whether it has been possible to establish other reception centres. The Committee also requests the Government to describe the protection measures provided to victims of trafficking with a view to their recovery and rehabilitation.

4. Article 4 of the Protocol. Access to remedies and compensation. The Committee notes that the Trafficking Ordinance provides for the possibility for associations to represent victims in court and a certain number of rights and guarantees for victims during judicial procedures, including the right to be informed, to an interpreter, the protection of their privacy, and confidentiality (sections 39 to 45). The Ordinance also provides that the courts shall award compensation to victims in recognition of the prejudice suffered, which shall be paid within a reasonable period. They can order the allocation of confiscated property or its value for the compensation and protection of victims. Moreover, the return of victims to their country of origin does not prejudice their right to compensation (section 36). The Government indicates that the draft decree establishing the operating procedures and management of the special compensation fund for victims of trafficking is in the process of adoption.

The Committee notes all of the provisions intended to facilitate the access of victims of trafficking to remedies and compensation. The Committee hopes that the Government will take the necessary measures for the establishment of the special compensation fund for victims of trafficking. It requests the Government to indicate the number of victims to whom the courts have awarded compensation and specify the measures taken to enforce the execution of these rulings. In more general terms, the Committee requests the Government to specify the manner in which legal assistance is provided to victims, including those who have left the national territory, and describe the action taken in this respect by the National Legal Assistance Agency and by civil society associations. It also requests the Government to describe the manner in which these institutions cooperate with the judicial system to guarantee victims access to effective remedies and compensation.

Non-prosecution of victims. The Government indicates that, among the reasons for not being held liable, section 41 of the Penal Code provides that “there shall be no crime, offence or violation in cases where the accused was in a state of insanity at the time of the act or where that person was under constraint from force that could not be resisted.” The Government also refers to section 32 of the Trafficking Ordinance, under the terms of which victims of trafficking shall not be prosecuted or convicted for the offences covered by the Ordinance, including unlawful entry or residence in Niger. The Committee notes these provisions and observes that the Trafficking Ordinance authorizes the authorities not to prosecute victims solely for violations related to their entry or residence on the national territory. The Committee requests the Government to indicate whether the provisions of section 41 of the Penal Code could be used to decide not to prosecute victims of trafficking who have been forced to engage in other types of unlawful activities (prostitution, drug trafficking, begging). If so, please indicate whether instructions have been issued in this respect to the forces of order and the prosecution services.

5. Article 25 of the Convention and Article 1(1) of the Protocol. Imposition of penalties. In its previous comments, the Committee requested the Government to provide information on the judicial procedures initiated under the provisions of the Trafficking Ordinance and on the problems identified by the law enforcement authorities, as they had referred to obstacles and inconsistencies in the application of the Ordinance. The Government refers to several training and capacity-building activities for the forces of order and actors in the criminal justice system. It provides statistics on the number of persons prosecuted and convicted for this crime in 2015 and 2016. The Committee observes in this respect that, according to the information contained in the document entitled “Collection of administrative data on trafficking in persons and similar offences in Niger, 2015”, that certain officials responsible for police commissariats experienced difficulties in making a distinction between trafficking in persons and the smuggling of migrants.

Observing that Niger has been confronted with a situation of widespread migration for a number of years, the Committee encourages the Government to continue developing training and capacity-building activities for all the actors involved in the process of the identification, prosecution and repression of the crime of trafficking in persons. The Committee also requests the Government to continue providing information on the prosecutions initiated in cases of trafficking and on the penalties imposed. Moreover, noting that, in accordance with the Trafficking Ordinance, the assets and all the property of an association can be seized, confiscated and allocated to the public treasury or the special compensation fund for victims of trafficking, the Committee requests the Government to indicate whether the courts have made use of this possibility.

Articles 1(1) and 2(1) of the Convention. Indirect compulsion to work in the event of vagrancy. For many years, the Committee has been drawing the Government’s attention to sections 177 and 178 of the Penal Code, which penalize vagrancy by defining it too broadly, thereby potentially becoming a means of indirect compulsion to work. In accordance with these provisions, vagrants, who are defined as persons with no fixed abode or means of subsistence and who habitually have no trade or occupation, are liable to a sentence of imprisonment of from three to six months. Noting the indication by the Government that sections 177 and 178 of the Penal Code have fallen into abeyance and will be repealed on the occasion of a forthcoming modification of the Penal Code, the Committee hopes that they will be repealed in the very near future so as to ensure that persons considered to be vagrants who do not disrupt public order are not liable to penalties.