Aboubacar’s life under the bridge near the Bridja, in the commune of Staouéli, west of Algiers, is not at all poetic. The young Nigerian, aged about twenty, does not complain about it. For three months he has been begging at the entrance to the communal market in Ain Benian, a neighbouring commune of Staouéli where his « logical » under the bridge. His goal is to make enough money and launch “his business” to improve his daily life and send money to his family who remained in Zinder, in Niger.
To reach this suburb of Algiers, he made “in a truck” a journey of nearly 3,300 km. While the journey between Zinder and the Algerian borders can take place in more or less acceptable conditions, it becomes perilous from In Guezzam in the extreme south-east of Algeria. “I don’t have a visa, so I enter fraudulently and, there, you have to follow the guides who can drop you off in the middle of the desert if you are chased by Algerian customs officers,” relate-t-il.
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A source of tension between Algiers and its neighbors to the south, the migration issue was the cause of a cold snap between Algeria and Niger with the summons, on April 3, 2024, of the Algerian ambassador to Niamey in protest against the “violent character” operations to push back West African migrants.
The page now seems to have been partly turned with the visit of the Nigerien Prime Minister, Ali Mahamane Lamine Zeine, to Algeria on 13 and 14 August, accompanied by a large ministerial delegation. This issue was discussed, which is all the more complex because Algiers does not have a clear policy, hence the permanent uncertainty for migrants who live between the fear of being sent back and the hope of making a life for themselves in this country where there is no shortage of job opportunities, particularly in construction.
Women give alms at crossroads
Only Malians are exempt from visa requirements under an agreement between the two countries. They are considered as “privileged” by other Sub-Saharans. The president of the Algerian Red Crescent, Ibtissam Hamlaoui, recalled that only the Sahrawis are considered refugees, all the others are migrants subject to the legislation on entry and exit from Algerian territory. It is therefore difficult, if not impossible, to have an idea, even approximate, of the number of these migrants.
Aboubacar says to himself ” lucky ” to have crossed the Sahara without too much difficulty. He thanks an amulet, his « talisman »who has it « protégé ». He shares his life under the bridge with companions crossing the desert. “We got to know each other during the trip, we got used to each other. It’s like my family now.” About fifty migrants, mostly women and children, have taken up residence there, in basic conditions. Several women share the care of groups of children. A makeshift camp, surrounded by fruit trees, where they sleep under the stars on filthy sponge mattresses or directly on the ochre earth.
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