[ Effets environnementaux liés à l’installation des réfugiés dans le Niger oriental (région de Diffa) ]
Volume 39, Issue 4, June 2023, Pages 1584–1600
Oumarou Ibrahim1, SOULEY Kabirou2, Abdou Bagna Amadou3, and Yamba Boubacar4
1 Département de Géographie, Faculté des Lettres et des Sciences Humaines, Université Abdou Moumouni, Niamey, Niger
2 Département de Géographie, Faculté de Lettres et Sciences Humaines, Université de Zinder, Niger
3 Département de Géographie, Université Abdou Moumouni, Ecole Normale Supérieure, BP 10963, Niamey, Niger
4 Département de Géographie, Faculté des Lettres et des Sciences Humaines, Université Abdou Moumouni, Niamey, Niger
Original language: French
Copyright © 2023 ISSR Journals. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
The Diffa region is located in the far east of Niger and occupies 12.4% of the country’s total land area where agriculture, livestock, and fishing remain the main activities of the people living there. As of February 2015, the region hosted more than 24,000 uprooted people, including Nigerien refugees, internally displaced persons in Niger, and Nigerien returnees who were previously living in Nigeria (UNHCR, 2021). The settlement of refugees not only has impacts on the environment but also on economic and social activities. This paper aims to analyze the environmental and socio-economic impacts of refugee activities in and around the camps (Diffa urban commune, Boudouri, Maina Kaderi, and Sayam forage). In order to analyze the impacts (identification, mapping, and observation of impacts in the field), three (3) approaches are used in this work. Surveys, field observations, and GIS and remote sensing analysis. The results show that refugee activities can have impacts on the environment but over the long term (10 to 15 years). Some effects related to soil degradation, destruction of vegetation, and pollution of water resources (quantity and quality) are observed in and around the sites in only 3 years of presence (GIS, remote sensing and field observation). At all sites, a decrease in fallow land, an increase in bare soil, and an increase in human settlements have been observed, signs that can have consequences on the environment. The accumulation of household waste that prevents the proper infiltration of rainwater into the soil and whose runoff carries away essential elements. As for mitigation measures, a strict application of laws and regulations on environmental protection is required.
Author Keywords: Niger, Diffa, refugee, environmental effects.
Volume 39, Issue 4, June 2023, Pages 1584–1600
Oumarou Ibrahim1, SOULEY Kabirou2, Abdou Bagna Amadou3, and Yamba Boubacar4
1 Département de Géographie, Faculté des Lettres et des Sciences Humaines, Université Abdou Moumouni, Niamey, Niger
2 Département de Géographie, Faculté de Lettres et Sciences Humaines, Université de Zinder, Niger
3 Département de Géographie, Université Abdou Moumouni, Ecole Normale Supérieure, BP 10963, Niamey, Niger
4 Département de Géographie, Faculté des Lettres et des Sciences Humaines, Université Abdou Moumouni, Niamey, Niger
Original language: French
Copyright © 2023 ISSR Journals. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Abstract
The Diffa region is located in the far east of Niger and occupies 12.4% of the country’s total land area where agriculture, livestock, and fishing remain the main activities of the people living there. As of February 2015, the region hosted more than 24,000 uprooted people, including Nigerien refugees, internally displaced persons in Niger, and Nigerien returnees who were previously living in Nigeria (UNHCR, 2021). The settlement of refugees not only has impacts on the environment but also on economic and social activities. This paper aims to analyze the environmental and socio-economic impacts of refugee activities in and around the camps (Diffa urban commune, Boudouri, Maina Kaderi, and Sayam forage). In order to analyze the impacts (identification, mapping, and observation of impacts in the field), three (3) approaches are used in this work. Surveys, field observations, and GIS and remote sensing analysis. The results show that refugee activities can have impacts on the environment but over the long term (10 to 15 years). Some effects related to soil degradation, destruction of vegetation, and pollution of water resources (quantity and quality) are observed in and around the sites in only 3 years of presence (GIS, remote sensing and field observation). At all sites, a decrease in fallow land, an increase in bare soil, and an increase in human settlements have been observed, signs that can have consequences on the environment. The accumulation of household waste that prevents the proper infiltration of rainwater into the soil and whose runoff carries away essential elements. As for mitigation measures, a strict application of laws and regulations on environmental protection is required.
Author Keywords: Niger, Diffa, refugee, environmental effects.
Abstract: (french)
La région de Diffa est située à l’extrême Est du Niger et occupe 12.4% de la superficie totale du pays ou l’agriculture, l’élevage, et la pèche demeurent les principales activités des populations qui y vivent. Depuis février 2015, la région accueillait plus de 241000 personnes déracinées, y compris des réfugiés nigérians, des personnes déplacées internes au Niger et des ressortissants nigériens de retour qui vivaient auparavant au Nigeria (UNHCR, 2021). L’installation des réfugiés a certes des impacts sur l’environnement mais aussi sur les activités économiques et sociales. Cet article a pour objectif d’analyser les impacts environnementaux et socio-économiques engendrés par les activités des réfugiés dans les camps (commune urbaine de Diffa, Boudouri, Maina Kaderi, et Sayam forage) et alentours. Dans l’optique d’analyser les impacts (Identification, cartographie et observation des impacts sur le terrain), trois (3) approches sont utilisées dans le cadre de ce travail. Les enquêtes, les observations sur le terrain, et l’analyse par le SIG et télédétection. Il ressort que les activités des réfugiés peuvent avoir des impacts sur l’environnement mais à long terme (10 à 15 ans). Quelques effets liés à la dégradation des sols, à la destruction de la végétation, et à la pollution des ressources en eau (quantité et qualité) sont observés dans les sites et alentours en seulement 3 ans de présence (SIG, télédétection et observation du terrain). Au niveau de tous les sites, on a observé une diminution de la jachère, une augmentation des sols nus, une augmentation d’habitations humaines, signes qui peuvent avoir des conséquences sur l’environnement. L’accumulation des déchets ménagers qui empêchent une bonne infiltration des eaux des pluies dans les sols et dont le ruissellement emporte les éléments essentiels. Quant aux mesures d’atténuation, une application stricte des lois et règlements sur la protection de l’environnement s’impose.
Author Keywords: Niger, Diffa, refugiés, effets environnementaux.
How to Cite this Article
Oumarou Ibrahim, SOULEY Kabirou, Abdou Bagna Amadou, and Yamba Boubacar, “Environmental effects related to the settlement of refugees in eastern Niger (Diffa region),” International Journal of Innovation and Applied Studies, vol. 39, no. 4, pp. 1584–1600, June 2023.
