Seventy percent (70%) of immigrant women in Malanville, a commune in northeastern Benin, feel their rights are threatened. They consider that they do not receive the same treatment as other citizens because of their migrant status. These revelations are made in the study on the enjoyment of the rights of immigrant women in the commune published in December 2022.

The rights of immigrant women are threatened in the commune of Malanville in northeastern Benin, a border area with Niger and Nigeria. Located in the department of Alibori and trading cattle, fish, and onions with the neighboring countries, the locality has a good rating. It is strategic because of its role in transit goods from the port of Cotonou and it remains a city at the heart of economic activities and human mobility. All this makes it a prized destination for the people of the Nigerien town of Gaya, which faces it on the other side of the Niger River.

Unfortunately, there are reports of human rights violations against immigrant women in this area, where migratory flows are quite consistent.

Results of the study on the enjoyment of rights by immigrant and stateless women in the commune of Malanville

Immigrant women say they don’t feel safe. They claim to be discriminated against because of their status as immigrant women. In a study validated on December 19, 2022, on the enjoyment of the rights of immigrant and stateless women in the commune of Malanville in the North-East of Benin, carried out by the NGO Ola Africa under funding from the European Union (EU) through the Beninese Human Rights Commission (CBDH), it was indicated that  Immigrant women feel partially safe on Beninese territory because of the threats they face because they are foreigners. “55% of the women interviewed on a sample of 35 individuals identified with the help of social services  including the Centre de Promotion Sociale (CPS) of Malanville, the police station, the City Hall and the Departmental Directorate of Social Affairs, are dissatisfied in terms of regular health care benefits; 55% of these women  do not feel safe at all times and in all places in Benin; 58% do not feel respected as human beings; and 70% do not feel treated on an equal footing with other citizens around them.

It should be noted that this study was carried out with the aim of assessing the level of benefit of immigrant women as human beings in order to contribute to the strengthening of the rule of law and the promotion and protection of human rights in northern Benin. And according to official sources from the local authorities of Malanville, “there are no specific provisions to ensure the enjoyment of human rights for these immigrants”.

Actions and expectations…

However, NGOs have been involved in raising awareness among migrant women about their rights, duties and remedies for migrants in the Republic of Benin. A way to allow them to denounce all the abuses of which they could be victims.  They are mostly nationals of Niger,  Togo, Nigeria and Ghana. They are mostly shopkeepers and bar waitresses.

“Migration is not a sin, it is ignorance of the rights of the migrant that is a sin,” stress the main actors campaigning for the realization of the rights of immigrant women in Malanville.  In the opinion of the sociologist, Édouard Dossouvi,  migration refers to any movement of a person or a group of people, either between countries or within a State.  And that immigration refers to the entry into a country, or into a given geographical area, of foreign persons for a long or short stay or a permanent settlement.”

In Benin, Article 5 of Law 2018-07 of 30 March 2018 ratifying “the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families” also specifies that migrant workers are considered to be documented or in a regular situation. Article 7 of the Convention requires States parties to respect and guarantee the rights recognized in the Convention to all migrant workers and members of their families without distinction of any kind. However, immigrant women in Malanville do not have  their needs  fully met, and do not fully enjoy all their needs.  “Benin has sufficient legal arsenal to be a good student in terms of human rights.  Unfortunately this arsenal is not well respected.  So, it will be interesting for an effort to be made for the respect of the texts in force in Benin for the enjoyment of human rights,” says the team of consultants of the study, led by Boniface K. BIAOU and Olivier ALAYE. In their opinion, this study makes it possible to realize that the enjoyment of human rights is still in question in Benin even if great efforts are made on a daily basis in favor of these rights.

The study also found that there is still serious work to be done to bring joy to migrant women in Benin.  According  to human rights observers,  Benin finds itself in conflict with its commitments that it has freely consented to and undertaken, and will greatly benefit from working to improve respect for human rights.   Well-treated immigrant women will be able to improve the economy through their work, argue human rights organizations. In addition, they say, it will strengthen Benin’s image at the international level with regard to respect for human rights.

In Benin, about three-quarters of immigrants come from neighboring countries such as Nigeria, Togo and Niger. According to data from the International Organization for Migration (IOM), 2.3% of Benin’s population is now made up of immigrants. Accordingto Professor John Igue, geographer, university professor and former Minister of Industry of Benin, the country is increasingly becoming a country of immigration. However, according to other estimates, the number would decrease according to IOM. It should be noted that since October 2016, nationals of African and other countries no longer need a visa to enter Benin.