06-02-2024 | di COOPI

Niger. Refugees suffering from epilepsy and mental disorders are being treated in Diffa, Niamey and Assamaka

In the regions of Niamey, Tillabéry, Maradi, Tahoua, Diffa and Agadez, Niger, thanks to the support of UNHCR (United Nations High Committee for refugee), throughout 2023 COOPI - Cooperazione Internazionale continued to support the mental health of refugees.

The work of our workers and specialized psychologists, carried out in the remote villages of Madaoua, Tillia, Bangui, N'guigmi, Tera, Gotheye, Assamaka, and Madarounfa, has enabled us to identify cases of epilepsy, a very common disease in Niger but which receives little treatment due to a lack of proper diagnosis, and to limit the use of drugs routinely consumed in the Country such as cola and tramadol (an opioid that has become one of the most widely consumed narcotics in West Africa).

As part of direct support to state psychiatric services, supplies of psychotropic drugs have been provided. In the Diffa region psychologists have had to apply specific therapies, such as family therapy and cognitive-behavioral therapy, to deal with psychological problems of refugees and internally displaced persons caused by the trauma their migration path has entailed.

Treatment offered during the project was both group and individual. Forty-four psychiatric cases, including 29 men and 15 women, have been treated at our humanitarian center in Agadez, while 34 psychiatric cases, including 20 men and 14 women, have been taken care of in Niamey and the Hamdallaye site. All these activities are generally monitored by mental health supervisors, and the most severe cases have been referred to the psychiatry department in Niamey. Because some beneficiaries have severe psychiatric disorders and need individual and specialized care, we have in fact collaborated with regional and national sanitary services to ensure coordinated, effective and appropriate treatment.

The regions hosting the largest number of displaced people in the Country are precisely those covered by the project (Diffa, Tillabéri, Tahoua, Niamey and Maradi), where COOPI intervenes with protection, emergency education, psychosocial support and mental health actions always in collaboration together with institutional partners, such as the Regional Directorates of Protection, Education and Health.