23-03-2023 | di COOPI

Niger. With the European Union we support the communities of Tillabery and Maradi against emergencies

Starting in May 2021, COOPI - Cooperazione Internazionale operates in Niger with the project "Strengthening multi-hazard shock preparedness, warning and response in fragile areas to ensure the fastest possible local response" funded by the European Union (Humanitarian Aid). Collaboration with international partners, namely the International Rescue Committee (IRC) and CONCERN Worldwide, as well as direct involvement of civil society and local authorities, led to the creation of the Regional Cooperation Council (RRC) project coordination and guidance platform. This is a useful and effective tool that, through the sharing of experience, expertise and resources, will also serve as a working basis for advocacy at local and national level. 

The project mainly targets the most vulnerable communities, such as women, children and displaced persons. The areas of intervention identified are Tillabery and Maradi: COOPI proposes here a multi-sectoral intervention, acting simultaneously to improve the hygiene, education and health of the resident communities through an approach based on synergy with other organisations and associations in the area. The action is mainly carried out by strengthening local capacities for immediate response to natural shocks, transferring technical skills and logistical means to the population and supporting basic services, aiming at the emergency-development nexus. 

Indeed, since 2018, the new crisis in the Maradi region, caused by extreme violence, has created a very high number of internally displaced persons. Terrorist attacks in several regions, especially on the borders, have added an additional layer of insecurity. The resulting displacement of populations is often accompanied by a makeshift settlement on the ground that comes into conflict with the local population and authorities. Thanks to COOPI's intervention, however, a few years after the start of the project, the areas of intervention are beginning to show more stability, thanks to the continuous cooperation of interventions and thanks to a direct approach on the ground, through a transfer of skills to the municipalities and the provision of logistical means adapted to the needs of immediate response to emergencies.

Since 2012, COOPI has been present in Niger to deal with various emergencies in the country, which has long been marked by multiple chronic stressors and structural weaknesses: the crisis in the Diffa region caused by Boko Haram, the crisis in the northern border area with Burkina Faso and Mali (Liptako Gourma) and, since 2018, the crisis in the Maradi region.