Niger, officially the Republic of Niger, is a landlocked country in West Africa. It became independent from France in 1960 and operates as a unitary semi-presidential republic.
With a population of approximately 25 million, over 98% are Muslim, primarily Sunni. The government provides minimal services and the country is often affected by droughts.
Constitutional and Legal Framework
The constitution prohibits religious discrimination and stipulates equality under the law for all, regardless of religion. It provides for freedom of conscience, religion, worship, and expression of faith consistent with public order, social peace, and national unity.
The constitution specifies separation of religion and state as an unalterable principle. It also stipulates that the President, Prime Minister, and President of the National Assembly must take an oath when assuming office on the holy book of his or her religion.
Religious groups are treated the same as other NGOs and must register with the Ministry of Interior’s Customary and Religious Affairs Office. Only registered organizations are legally recognized entities.
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Registration approval is based on submission of required legal documents, including the group’s charter, minutes of the group’s board of directors, annual action plan, and list of the organization’s founders. Nonregistered groups are not permitted to operate, although some unregistered religious organizations reportedly operate without authorization in remote areas.
Religious Demographics
Islam is the most followed religion in Niger, practiced by over 98% of the population. According to Pew, roughly 80% of Muslims are Sunni of the Maliki school of jurisprudence, while 20% are non-denominational Muslims. Other religions practiced in Niger include Animism and Christianity.
A small percentage of the population practices Animism or traditional indigenous religious beliefs. Studies estimate that such practitioners number about 4.11% of the total population in 2020, but these numbers can be misleading due to syncretism within Muslim communities.
Christians, both Roman Catholics and Protestants, account for less than 1% of the population. They include local believers from educated, elite, and colonial families, as well as immigrants from neighboring coastal countries.
The Baháʼí Faith in Niger began in 1966, with the National Spiritual Assembly elected in 1975. After a period of oppression, the National Assembly was re-elected starting in 1992.
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Here's a table summarizing the religious demographics in Niger:
| Religion | Percentage of Population |
|---|---|
| Islam (primarily Sunni) | 98%+ |
| Animism | 4.11% (estimated) |
| Christianity (Roman Catholic and Protestant) | Less than 1% |
| Baháʼí Faith | Small community |
Government Policies and Practices
The government prohibits open air, public proselytization events by all religious groups due to national security concerns. The establishment of any private school by a religious association must receive the concurrence of both the Ministry of Interior and the relevant department of the Ministry of Education.
According to the Ministry of Interior, private Quranic schools, established solely to teach the Quran without providing other education, are unregulated. They are officially considered to be denominational schools falling under the Ministry of the Interior and do not benefit from public subsidies.
Most public schools do not include religious education. The government provided guidance on sermons.
The government did not achieve its stated intent to fully implement the 2019 National Worship Strategy by the end of the year due to resource and capacity constraints. The scarcity of law enforcement personnel and the resistance of the country’s citizens to laws they consider coercive further hindered the government’s efforts.
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The government ensured there was an adequate number of designated areas for women and persons with disabilities to pray in public and government-owned buildings.
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Security Threats and Government Response
The government stated that it continued to face a series of persistent and growing security threats from the group alternatively known as “the Islamic State in West Africa,” or “the Islamic State’s West Africa Province,” as well as from Boko Haram, a jihadist terrorist organization active in the region.
Armed terrorist groups, including Boko Haram and groups affiliated with al-Q’aida, ISIS in the Greater Sahara (ISIS-GS), and ISIS-West Africa (ISIS-WA), attacked and killed hundreds of civilians and security forces, according to media.
In response, the government launched air strikes in Tamou, a gold-mining town in the Tillabéri Region, that killed dozens of civilians. The government stated that the casualties were terrorists, but REPPAD, a human rights NGO, conducted an independent investigation and released a report that stated the casualties were civilians.
Notable Incidents
In February, authorities arrested Muslim cleric Alfa Ali Boubacar and charged him with “production and dissemination of information prejudicial to public order and incitement of violence.” He was arrested and charged because he uttered a fatwa against the regime and criticized the government for its “poor management of security in the Tillabéri Region [and] the presence of French troops in the country.”
Additionally, he stated that the victims of a raid conducted by the military in Tamou District were gold miners, rather than terrorists. He was briefly released from prison in April, after a recommendation from the Forum on Peace, Security, and Development, a collaboration of government officials, scholars, and business leaders from the country’s western Tillabéri Region.
Interfaith Dialogue and Diplomacy
Christian groups active in the country included missions, associations, movements, and NGOs. The Interfaith Dialogue Organization, with both Muslim and Christian members, continued to meet in committees in all eight regions of the country and in local committees in 140 communes of the country.
Embassy representatives conveyed messages of religious tolerance in meetings with Muslim and Christian representatives. The Chargé spoke with a prominent imam and the Catholic Archbishop at the embassy’s Fourth of July celebration. The Chargé also met with the Imam of Niamey to express solidarity with the country’s Muslims on Eid al-Fitr.
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