Integrating refugee self-reliance with environmental protection in Niger

The project was implemented by ADKOUL in Tillia, Tchintabaradene and Abalak in the north of the administrative region of Tahoua in Niger. It began in January 2022 and ended in 2023. This good practice rehabilitated pastoral land and provided food and water for displaced populations, host communities and their animals, while supporting access to integrated basic services. Project partners promoted solar energy to counteract deforestation, regenerated, through a cash-for-work programme, 1,392 hectars of degraded land while protecting and reinforcing biodiversity, bolstering protection by supporting local governance, and emphasizing social cohesion, conflict prevention, and local ownership. This also mitigated the impact of climate change and further displacement. 

The project aimed to enhance protection and access to water, renewable energy and education for displacement-affected persons while strengthening income opportunities for refugees, IDPs, and host communities to improve food security, healthcare access and livestock management. It focused on biodiversity protection and desertification reduction in areas affected by erosion and declining rainfall, while mitigating climate change through solar energy promotion at pastoral pumping stations and providing solar lamps to students. The initiative implemented integrated programming and localization via a people-centered, whole-of--society approach aligned with local development plans, encouraging diverse community participation. By increasing access to shared resources like pastureland and reducing tensions between displaced persons and hosts, the project sought to improve social cohesion. 

Main activities of the Good Practice

This good practice integrates income generation, protection, and service improvement for IDPs and refugees with environmental management and species protection, addressing displacement risks. Land regeneration used a consultative cash-for-work scheme employing the half-moon technique in eleven Niger sites, effectively combating desertification. The project, through the cash-for-work scheme, planted 59,584 forage plants, built firewalls, and distributed energy-efficient stoves (which use 50 per cent less firewood than normal stoves) to 6,000 households in 36 villages. Vulnerable populations affected by wildfires received unconditional money transfers.

Additional interventions included livestock feed distribution during lean seasons, installation of 1,600 table benches in 20 schools, solar lamp distribution to 1,000 students and 15 teachers, and improved water access through construction and rehabilitation of water points, standpipes, and inter-village connections.

The practice's strength lies in its comprehensive, multi-sectoral approach, addressing immediate and long-term needs holistically. This strategy demonstrated a more impactful contribution to self-reliance and environmental sustainability, showcasing how integrated interventions can effectively support displaced populations while promoting ecological resilience.

Elements which helped facilitate the implementation of the good practice

The well-thought-out project design fostered social cohesion by providing diverse livelihoods support tailored to various communities' traditional income-generating methods, enabled by a comprehensive multi-sectoral approach. Local authorities, technical services, traditional leaders, and communities were involved in a participatory process to select land restoration sites and species for reintroduction. Over 5,600 temporary jobs were created as communities engaged in digging, planting, and watering, earning income while collectively improving their well-being. This approach mobilized community enthusiasm and aligned with Niger's national policies, including the 2022-2025 Economic and Social Development Plan, National Migration Policy, National Gender Policy, and Tahoua regional development plan. The good practice exemplifies comprehensive interventions through multi-sectoral activities.

Partners involved

• NGO ADKOUL
• Arbeiter-Samariter-Bund (ASB) 
• Departmental directorates for the environment and the fight against desertification
• Association of Women Nursery Workers
• Regional Directorate of Humanitarian Action and Disaster Management
• Regional Departments of National Education (DREN) 
• Local administrative and customary authorities
• Departmental directorates of hydraulics, hygiene and sanitation
• Community committees
• UNHCR Niger 
• Project funded by the EU-UNOPS Lives in Dignity Grant Facility 

What challenges were encountered in delivering the project and how were they overcome?

Challenges

1. Security and land management: Communities in Tillia faced risks from jihadist groups during cash-for-work activities. Additionally, the influx of livestock to restored land posed challenges for the project's environmental goals.
2. Economic situation: Sanctions following an unconstitutional change in Niger's government led to liquidity issues and economic decline, significantly impacting cash assistance activities.
3. Monitoring mobile populations: High mobility among some displacement-affected communities complicated post-distribution monitoring and follow-up efforts.
4. Keeping development-oriented approach: Balancing immediate humanitarian needs with long-term development activities especially in light of rising food prices was challenging.
5. Environmental challenges: Extreme weather conditions accelerated desert encroachment, reducing pasturelands and fueling conflicts between pastoralists and cultivators.

How they were overcome

1. Security and land management: Rigorous security monitoring and coordination with authorities, defense forces, and CIMCORD enabled safe implementation of cash-for-work activities in high-risk areas. The project established management committees instead of a guardian system to oversee restored land sites and prevent livestock influx, ensuring better long-term sustainability.
2. Economic situation: Project staff developed a contingency plan to reduce implementation and execution costs while maintaining community entitlements. This adaptive approach allowed the project to stay within budget despite economic instability, ensuring continued support to communities.
3. Monitoring mobile populations: To address displacement-affected people’s mobility challenges, the project adopted a robust methodology with smaller sample sizes. Multiple data collection tools were employed to enable triangulation and confirm findings, increasing the depth of analysis despite the limitations.
4. Balancing immediate and long-term needs: A multi-theme approach incorporating the Humanitarian-Development-Peace nexus was implemented. This integrated assistance strategy effectively addressed both immediate humanitarian needs and longer-term development goals, providing a more comprehensive support system for the target population. For instance, the number of cash transfer allocations were increased to adapt to the changed context.
5. Environmental challenges: The project revised its budget to allocate more funds for land rehabilitation and improved livestock feed distribution. This adaptive approach partially addressed the environmental degradation issues by expanding activities to cultivators, increasing the size of rehabilitated land, and ensuring more adequate feed supplies for breeders.

Results of the Good Practice

• Project reached 34,702 people across multiple sectors.
• Boosted local economy: 900 vulnerable households received unconditional money transfers; 5,663 people engaged in cash-for-work land restoration.
• Restored 1,392 hectares of ecosystems, enhancing livestock grazing potential.
• Distributed 441 tonnes of livestock feed to 1,764 breeders, benefiting 8,725 animals.
• Installed 1,600 table benches in 20 schools, supporting 1,414 students.
• Provided solar lamps to 1,000 students and 15 teachers across 10 schools.
• Improved water access for 16,276 beneficiaries through construction and rehabilitation of water points.
• Enhanced social cohesion among refugees, IDPs, and host communities through increased project collaboration.

In what way does the good practice meet one or more of the four objectives of the Global Compact on Refugees?

Objective 1: Ease the pressures on host countries

This good practice contributes to alleviating pressures on host countries.

Objective 2: Enhance refugee self-reliance

This good practice reinforces the self-reliance of refugees.

Next steps

The project's impact persists through sustainability measures implemented before its 2023 conclusion. Management committees, trained in site management, herbaceous seeding, and fodder planting, now oversee restored land, preventing livestock influx. Communities independently manage these sites, with joint monitoring by environmental services. Twenty local craftsmen were trained and equipped to manufacture and repair energy-efficient stoves, ensuring their continued use. The Association of Public Water Service Users (AUSPE) was established to manage and maintain rehabilitated water points. ASB and ADKOUL are developing a new project based on the final evaluation's recommendations, targeting additional community members in the same locations.

Are there areas in which support would be required to continue and/or scale up your good practice?

Expanding these good practices requires increased funding for wider-scale implementation in intervention areas. Capacity building and learning visits to Eastern African countries with similar topography could introduce new technologies like sand dams, proven effective in erosion reduction, land reclamation, and year-round water access. Adapting these technologies to the Sahel could provide additional methods to support regions with limited annual rainfall. Continued funding is essential to further support these communities and sustain the progress achieved.