NIGER - NIGERIA REPORT OF THE FIRST JOINT TECHNICAL WORKING GROUP  (JTWG) ON STRENGTHENING CROSS-BORDER COOPERATION IN COMBATING TRAFFIKING IN PERSONS REPORT OF THE LAUNCH AND INAUGURAL MEETING OF THE JTWG

Strengthening Niger-Nigeria Cooperation on Countering Trafficking in Human Beings (NR-NG Project)


Niger, June 14-18 2021




 								 
1.	Launch of the Niger Nigeria Project
Within the framework of the project: Strengthening Niger-Nigeria Cooperation on Countering Trafficking in Human Beings, a Nigerian Delegation comprised of NAPTIP officials, Immigration Service, Ministries of Humanitarian affairs, Justice and Foreign Affairs attended the launch of the project organized in Niger. The delegation arrived in Niamey on Sunday 13 June 2021. On the first day of the mission, 14 June 2021, the delegation visited the Netherlands Ambassador Paul Tholen, the Niger Minister of Justice Dr. Boubakar Hassane, and the Deputy Head of the Nigerian Mission Ambassador Aisha Garba. The courtesy visits were immediately followed by a 2-day technical workshop in Niamey (14th to 15th of June) and a 2-day field visit to Agadez (16th to 18th of June) to hold the first meeting of the JTWG and observe the VoTs phenomenon firsthand.
The meeting with Ambassador Paul Tholen focused on the general expectations of the project and the need to foster operational cooperation between Niger and Nigeria. Such cooperation should entail the establishment of a direct, flexible and practical joint operational mechanisms that go beyond participation in workshops or attendance at conferences. The implementation of the action should be practical and hands-on. 
During the courtesy visit to the Niger Minister of Justice Dr. Boubakar Hassane, the Minister reiterated his support for the bilateral cooperation initiative between Nigeria and Niger and expressed his commitment on behalf of the Government of Niger to ensure the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding with Nigeria in combatting the crime of trafficking in persons. 
At the Nigerian Embassy in Niamey, the Deputy Head of Mission who received the delegation took the opportunity to elaborate on the different challenges the embassy is confronted with in relation to the insecurity along the border areas between Niger and Nigeria; the high incidence of migrant flow along the routes, the consequences of illicit arms smuggling; and the high number of trafficked victims of Nigerian origin who are often intercepted by security agents on both sides of the border.
Develop Terms of Reference (ToR) for the Identification and Constitution of the JTWG
The expert facilitator made extensive consultations before presenting stakeholders with a draft terms of reference for the JTWG. Based on the recommendations from government agencies on both sides (Niger and Nigeria) a draft ToR was shared. The participants agreed that the draft ToR should be submitted for adoption at the next JTWG meeting, if there are no objections from either party. The next JTWG meeting will be held virtually via Zoom, which ICMPD will facilitate. 
Inauguration of JTWG and Establishment of Committees to Work on Thematic Areas
A review of the institutional framework governing the fight against cross-border trafficking in persons between Niger and Nigeria was based on three presentations, respectively by, 1. Ag. Director General of NAPTIP, 2. Director General of ANLTP/TIM and, 3. Head of the Special Investigations Division within the Niger Direction de la Surveillance du Territoire (DST). 
From the Nigerian side, a centralized institutional set-up vests the mandate for victim identification, investigation and prosecution of traffickers, protection and victim assistance /psycho-social support on one single agency- NAPTIP. The set-up of NAPTIP includes officials seconded from other competent institutions such as the Nigeria Immigration Service and Nigeria Police. The agency integrates a command and control structure with the capacity to enforce end-to-end operations.
For Niger, the institutional set-up is decentralized. Two entities: the National Coordination Commission for the Fight against Trafficking in Persons and Illicit Trafficking in Migrants (CNCLCTP/TIM); the National Agency for the Fight against Trafficking in Persons and Illicit Smuggling of Migrants (ANLTP/TIM) take the lead. The CNCLCTP/TIM is the body that promotes, designs, and develops policies and programs related to the prevention of TIP. On the other hand, the ANLTPTIM is the operational structure for the execution and implementation of national policies and strategies on trafficking in persons and smuggling of migrants adopted by CNCLTP/TIM. 
The ANLTP/TIM unlike NAPTIP is not an enforcement agency; rather, the mandate to enforce is vested in the Division of Special Investigations (DIS). Meanwhile, the DIS with its command and control structure has similar functions relating to aspects of the Nigeria Immigration service and the Nigeria Police.
A major differences in the institutional set-up between NAPTIP and ANLTP-TIM that has direct implications for the cooperation is in relation to enforcement. NAPTIP has a department in charge of investigations with investigators on duty (Investigation Department), while ANLTP-TIM can only rely on public services having mandate in Niger to ensure security and investigation in criminal matters (judicial police, DST, DIS-ECI, etc.). Again, NAPTIP has an internal department and staff in charge of criminal prosecution (Legal & Prosecution Department); but ANLTP-TIM necessarily rely on public prosecutor since in Niger only prosecutors' offices of the courts (prosecutors' offices of anti-terrorist pole, etc.) are in charge of prosecution.
Nevertheless, both NAPTIP and ANLTP-TIM have the mandate to provide overall coordination and referral of victims and both parties are motivated by the same desire to strengthen their cooperation by building on points of convergence and overcoming elements of divergence, in particular through the establishment of a Joint Technical Working Group (JTWG). The review of the agencies allowed participants to understand the structure and mandate of NAPTIP and ANLTP and to reflect on how to constitute the JTWG.
The question of the mandate gave rise to numerous interventions and lively debates, and finally a consensus was reached on certain number general principles:
• The JTWG will be responsible for identifying common priorities and implementing coordinated joint interventions.
• It will identify and agree on minimum standards for the management of cross-border trafficking cases in both countries.
Below is the provisional structure of the JTWG:

MEMBERS PROVISIONNALY APPOINTED BY ANLTP-TIM (NIGER)
Order	Title / Organization	Members
A	Agence Nationale pour la Lutte contre la Traite des Personnes	4
B	National Coordination Commission for the Fight against TIP/ITM	1
C	Direction de la Surveillance du Territoire (DST)	2
D	ONEPCJ	1
E	Parquet du Pôle Antiterroriste	1
F	Président du Pôle Antiterroriste	1
G	OSC	1
TOTAL MEMBERSHIP ANLTP-TIM (NIGER)	11

MEMBERS PROVISIONNALY APPOINTED BY NAPTIP (NIGERIA)
Order	Title / Organization	Members
A	NAPTIP	8
B	Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs	1
C	Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs	1
D	Federal Ministry of Justice	1
E	Nigerian Immigration Service	1
TOTAL MEMBERSHIP NAPTIP (NIGERIA)	12

Elaborate JTWG Annual Workplan and Implementation Framework
A brainstorming session at the first meeting of the JTWG resulted in a list of actions both agencies could jointly implement. At the meeting, it was agreed that subcommittees be established to ensure effective implementation of the activities. Below are the suggested joint actions:
• Joint training of law enforcement agencies along the border
• Joint training of NAPTIP and ANLTP staff
• Joint training of shelter personnel to promote understand how each agency works
• National study on the situation of children and women in Niger
• Reinforce the capacity of the administrative commissions of both agencies
• Tripartite Agreement between NIGER/NIGERIA/ICMPD to create a framework to formalize the initiative
• Create training opportunity for the members of the joint technical working group (JTWG) on TIP
• Create a platform for intelligence exchange between ANLTP/NAPTIP
• Provision of shelter facility in Agadez, Niger

2.	Memorandum of Understanding between ANLTP/TIM and NAPTIP
Discussions were held around the signing of a Memorandum of understanding between the ANLTP-TIM and NAPTIP and it was agreed that the JTWG takes up the task of reviewing the draft MoU prepared by NAPTIP (available in English and French). ICMPD will facilitate virtual meetings for the review of the MoU and when finalized both partners will present the document subject to their respective national laws for signing.  
Following from the above, a joint press briefing was held outlining the key areas of cooperation between the two countries and to communicate the commitment of both countries in combating trans-border TIP. See Press Release in annex 2.

3.	Mission in Agadez, Niger
The delegation from both Niger and Nigeria arrived in Agadez on 16 June 2021 and were met at the airport by members of the Nigerian community. The project had made contact with the community prior to arrival to facilitate the understanding of the scope of the problem of trafficking of Nigerian victims and potential victims in Agadez. Given that Agadez is a transit route for VoT, it was important for the project to visit the communities where some of the migrants live, also called “ghettos”, most of the individuals met were Nigerian women and children. In addition, the project delegation paid courtesy visits to local authorities in Agadez, including the Sultan and the Governor of the Agadez region, who was represented by the Secretary General.

In Agadez 17 June, the attention of the JTWG was drawn to the case of a Victim of Trafficking, a young girl from Edo State, Nigeria. The VoT was brought to meet the JTWG by her caretakers who owned the church/orphanage in Agadez where the VoT was referred. The VoT was a 14 or 15 year old girl returned from Libya and taken to the IOM camp in Agadez. After months of waiting to be returned to Nigeria caused by delays in the issuance of travel documents by the Nigerian embassy, her health condition deteriorated at the camp and she was referred to the church/orphanage. The JTWG observed that her health condition was dangerously in decline and immediate action needed to be taken to save her life as she was no longer talking or walking. Both the Niger and the Nigeria teams agreed that this was an emergency and requested ICMPD’s support for her evacuation from the Agadez risk area.
On the 18th of June 2021, ICMPD took urgent and necessary measures to secure a travel document, police clearance certificate, and a seat on an otherwise full flight back to Niamey. Removing the Victim from the Agadez risk area was important, to prevent re-trafficking or further victimization. She was successfully transported from Agadez and immediately admitted at a private hospital facility in Niamey. On 24 June 2021, the VoT was returned to Nigeria accompanied by an ANLTP Official and received at the Abuja, Nigeria airport terminal by Nigeria Immigration Service and NAPTIP Officials. The project had foreseen the provision of assistance to VoTs as an activity of the JTWG (budget line 13 – 1.3.6.2), as well as support to stranded migrants. The emergency response provided to the young VoT fits within the framework of the project.
The hands-on experience of the JTWG occasioned by the return of the young girl from Agadez revealed the operational gaps that exist in the management of cross-border referral mechanisms for VoTs. Some of the gaps include:
•	Inadequate capacity of the Nigerian embassy to respond to the needs of Nigerian victims in Niger (in areas of victims identification and assistance), 
•	Inadequate number of shelters in Agadez to meet the growing needs of VoTs and stranded migrants, 
•	There is need to support the host communities of migrants in the Agadez region given the growing number of migrants staying for longer periods in an area with very limited resources and public services,
•	There is need to deploy NAPTIP officials for short term missions to Niger to support the identification of victims and to closely collaborate with ANLTP to pursue criminal networks of traffickers.
4.	Conclusion and Immediate Mission Outcomes:
-	Constitution of a Joint Technical Working Group (JTWG);
-	A common understanding of the intuitional set-up that exists in both Nigeria and Niger
-	Agreement on the general principles and procedures for the signing of the MoU between NAPTIP and ANLTP-TIM 
-	Experience sharing on the dynamics observed in the field of transnational trafficking (best practices, challenges faced) between the two countries;
-	Proposals to the JTWG on joint actions and a practical guide for operationalizing an SOP for the support of VoT and stranded migrants in Niger.




ANNEX 1 – ToR for the JTWG
TERMS OF REFERENCE
FOR THE JTWG-ANLTP-NAPTIP)
This ToR will be adopted at the next JTWG Meeting
1. Background
The project aims to strengthen the coordination of anti-trafficking response in Niger and Nigeria, and to establish a multiagency framework for cooperation in combatting Trafficking in Persons (TIP) in both countries. The project will facilitate information sharing and collaboration, with the aim of strengthening investigation, prosecution and care for victims of trafficking in persons (VoTs) and to prevent victimization of stranded migrants.
The project seeks to establish a coordination mechanism to strengthen the fight against TIP, as well as the referral of VoTs and stranded migrants between Niger and Nigeria through the establishment of a joint technical working group, and tailored joint capacity building programmes for key migration stakeholders. 
The project will take into account ongoing initiatives between Niger and Nigeria in the areas of victim assistance and the dismantling of trafficking and Smuggling networks. The project will leverage on existing mechanisms to improve the impact of the proposed actions. The project will establish a collaboration framework for combatting Trafficking in Persons (TIP) in Niger and Nigeria. This will involve 1.) Establishing a Joint Technical Working Group to facilitate information sharing and coordinate joint actions in combatting TIP; 2.) Strengthening the capacities of state actors in Niger and Nigeria to conduct joint operations in the areas of identification, investigation, prosecution and protection of victims of trafficking.
2. Objectives
The ICMPD led cooperation initiative between NAPTIP and ANLTP-TIM implemented within the framework of the Netherlands funded Strengthening Niger-Nigeria Cooperation on Countering Trafficking in Human Beings project is to foster operational corporation between the Governments of Nigeria and Niger through the instrumentality of a Joint Technical Working Group (JTWG) set-up to identify common priorities and to implement joint coordinated interventions.
The JTWG will be supported by the ICPMD Secretariat. To that effect, the JTWG will:
3. Membership and Frequency of Meetings
• Membership to the JTWG will be as defined by both Niger and Nigeria. Below is the tentative composition of the working group:
-	Agence Nationale pour la Lutte contre la Traite des Personnes (4)
-	National Coordination Commission for the Fight against TIP/ITM (1)
-	Direction de la Surveillance du Territoire (DST)	(2)
-	ONEPCJ  (1)
-	Parquet du Pôle Antiterroriste  (1)
-	Président du Pôle Antiterroriste  (1)
-	OSC  (1)
-	NAPTIP	(8)
-	Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs  (1)
-	Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affair  (1)
-	Federal Ministry of Justice  (1)
-	Nigerian Immigration Service  (1)
TOTAL MEMBERSHIP 23
• The JTWG meetings will convene monthly and as needed;
• The JTWG group will be chaired and co-chaired by the DGs of ANLTP-TIM and NAPTIP on a rotational basis;
• Sub-Committees will be set-up, responsible for specific tasks of the JTWG.

4. Meetings and Minutes of Meetings
• The JTWG group Meetings will be facilitated by the ICMPD Project Manager;
• Minute taking will be supported by ICMPD Programme Assistants. The minutes will be shared with the Chair and co-Chair as soon as possible after the meeting, but not more than 3 days after the meeting. The minutes will then be circulated to members for information, and approval via email and/or at the next meeting. This process will be carried out in a timely manner;
• Minutes of the meetings will be circulated and adopted at the subsequent meeting.
• Minutes will be in English and French
• Meetings will be in English and French with simultaneous interpretation.
5. Tasks of the Chair
• Carry out the overall responsibilities in the TOR to meet the expected outputs and overall purpose of the JTWG;
• Convene and facilitate meetings of the JTWG (and/or joint meetings with another working group), increasing or reducing their frequency as needed but being careful to avoid meeting overload;
• Ensure that the JTWG is well-managed and action and results-oriented, with decisions clearly communicated to relevant partners and stakeholders;
• Ensure that meetings are managed in line with the Principles of Partnership;
• Facilitate agreement on an efficient division of labor and the assignment of responsibilities amongst members which takes account of their comparative advantages and complementarities;
• Designate focal points or sub-committees for specific issues where necessary;
• Ensure that the strategic operational framework of the JTWG is updated regularly according to evolving needs;
• Organize and chair the JTWG meetings and facilitate inclusive discussions;
• Promote synergies with other working groups and other actors active in complementary sectors;
• Promote coordination amongst members, ensure decisions are taken in a participatory way and follow up on key decisions and action points.
6. Tasks of the Co-Chair
• Participate in JTWG meetings regularly, and facilitating the meeting when appropriate;
• Maintain appropriate links and dialogue with JTWG members and other relevant actors;
• Participate pro-actively in priority setting for meeting agenda and follow-up of action points emanating from meetings;
• Participate actively in contingency planning and preparedness, ensuring that the JTWG members are also contributing to and sharing responsibilities ;
• Promote/support training and capacity building of JTWG members and partners;
• Provide access to French and/or English language translation as and when required;
• Bring primary information and bring urgent needs/issues to JTWG's attention from direct access to field.
7. Tasks of the Members
• Each partner/member will identify a dedicated focal point (from the organization/ agency) to facilitate communications, as well as to ensure that they have the opportunity to participate in the JTWG to their maximum capacity;
• Each partner/member will, as much as possible, attend JTWG meetings and contribute in the agenda and action points; and will update the working group on specific area of concerns/unmet needs;
• The focal point person of each partner/member will contribute to the relevant strategic planning and implementation of the JTWG responsibilities;
• The focal point person, or a suitable technically skilled alternate, if available, will support relevant sub-working groups established by the JTWG;
• Participate regularly at working group meetings, to the degree possible by the same individual(s) and with an appropriate level of technical knowledge;
• Share responsibilities for JTWG activities, including the development of management of cross border TIP guidelines/tools;
• Proactively share best practices, lessons learnt, and findings from assessments, monitoring and evaluations;
• Disseminate the information, guidance, decisions and tools developed in the JTWG within their organizations;
• Ensure structured handover in case they are replaced as focal points by their organizations.

8. Secretariat (ICMPD Role)
•	Send out meeting notifications
•	Write meeting minutes and share with the Chair and co-Chair
•	Act as meeting moderator whenever the Chair or co-Chair are not available
•	Preparing and sharing necessary documentation before the meeting
•	The secretariat of the JTWG will be based in the ANLTP office.

 
ANNEX 2 - Participants
PROJECT LAUNCH PARTICIPANTS
S/N	Designation	Organization/ Agency
1	Technical Advisor to the Minister of Justice	Ministry of Justice
2	J.a. Onep/CJ	J.a. Onep/CJ
3	Perm. Sec. 	National Committee of Migration
4	Chef de department, Statistique	ANLTI-TIM
5	Assistant Protection Officer	IOM
6	Project Officer	UNODC
7	ANAJJ	ANAJJ
8	President	CNCLTP-TIM
9	Director of Communications	des ministère de la Justice
10	Director General	ANLTP-TIM
11	Chef de la division des investigation	DST
12	Chef de department, Admin.	ANLTP-TIM
13	Consultant	FACTEURX
14	Ag. DG and Director, Legal Dept. 	NAPTIP
15	Director, Consular and Legal Department	Ministry of Foreign Affairs
16	Director Research and Programme Development	NAPTIP
17	Deputy Director	Ministry of Justice
18	Head, Intelligence and Int’l Cooperation	NAPTIP
19	Zonal Commander, Kano	NAPTIP
20	Zonal Commander, Maiduguri	NAPTIP
21	Deputy Comptroller of Immigration	Nigeria Immigration Service
22	Senior Research Officer	NAPTIP
23	Technical Assistant	Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs
24	President	ONG LTHP
25	Directuice des Affaires,	juridiques/ ministère des Affaires étrangères
26	PJSLT	CTO
27	Director of Formation	NPF/Protection enfantes
28	PJSLT	CTO
29	OCI/	OCI/Niger
30	President	Nigeria Community/Niger
31	Researcher	FACTEURX
32	MAT/OC	DEP/PI
33	Divisional Commissioner 	DST
34	Chef bureau, Regional	Niamey
35	Head of Dept. Communication and Public Affairs	ANLTP-TIM
36	Computer Officer	ANLTP-TIM
37	EU CAP/Sahel	EU CAP/Sahel
38	Senior Chancellor	Nigerian Embassy
39	ECI/Niger	FIIAP
40	Project manager	ICMPD
41	    Head of West Africa Office	ICMPD
42	Associate Project Officer	ICMPD