The Chancellor has flown on to the Niger, the next stop on her African trip. Her meeting with President Mahamadou Issoufou focused on the country’s migration policy and a planned migration partnership with the European Union.
The Niger is the second stop on Chancellor Angela Merkel’s trip to Africa. With President Mahamadou Issoufou, the Chancellor discussed development cooperation, the Niger’s migration policy and a planned migration partnership with the European Union. "We intend to build on the long-standing development cooperation with the Niger," said Angela Merkel. Water management, agriculture and education projects are the main focus of German support, she reported.
The Niger is one of the major transit countries for migrants trying to reach North Africa or Europe. Against this backdrop, the Chancellor announced that Germany would like to cooperate with the Niger in three more areas, on top of the existing priority areas.
After her meeting with the President, Angela Merkel also met with German troops serving at the Bundeswehr air transport base.
She visited a transit centre run by the International Organization for Migration (IOM). Returning migrants are cared for at these centres by the IOM. They are given support to help them return to their own countries on a voluntary basis. And in Niamey the Chancellor visited the Goudel II primary school, which was financed by the German side.