Frontex Executive Director Fabrice Leggeri met with Nigerien authorities this week to discuss the deployment of the Agency's first liaison officer in Niger and cooperation in areas affecting border management and security. He also opened the workshop of the Africa-Frontex Intelligence Community (AFIC) taking place in Niger’s capital of Niamey.
“My first visit to Niger underscores the growing importance of our cooperation with African countries in the area of integrated border management. Niger’s location as a bridge between West Africa, Sahel and Maghreb makes the country an indispensable and pivotal partner when searching for solutions to common challenges that are affecting our two continents. Border control is only part of the solution to the ongoing migration flows and we are looking to establish new channels of cooperation between Frontex and countries in Africa,” Fabrice Leggeri said.
“Of course, we already have a long tradition of cooperation, especially through AFIC, which brings together Frontex analysts in the area of border security with those of the partner African authorities,” he added.
As part of the efforts to strengthen its cooperation with Niger and other African countries, especially those affected by migratory flows, Frontex expects to deploy its first liaison officer in Africa later this year. The officer will be stationed in Niger, work with national authorities to strengthen cooperation in the fields related to integrated border management and will also monitor the migratory flows through Niger towards Libya. In Niger, Frontex will also work closely with the EEAS/EU Delegation in Niamey and EU’s civilian mission EUCAP Sahel Niger.
The AFIC workshop in Niamey, the fifth such event in Africa, will discuss topics that include the fight against terrorism and drug trafficking, transit flows through Africa and migrant smuggling. AFIC was created in 2010 to provide a framework for knowledge and intelligence sharing in the field of border security between Frontex and African countries.