Niger: Niger's Junta Marks Three Years Amid Rising Violence and Lost Freedoms

What the report says

AllAfrica, carrying an RFI report dated 27 July 2026, says Niger’s military authorities are marking three years since the overthrow of President Mohamed Bazoum with a mixed picture: rapid oil-led economic expansion alongside worsening insecurity and a broad squeeze on political freedoms. RFI’s account is based largely on comments from Kiari Liman-Tinguiri, a former Nigerien ambassador to the United States under Bazoum.

Bazoum was ousted on 26 July 2023 and, according to the report, remains detained in Niamey with his wife. Niger is now run by the National Council for the Safeguarding of the Fatherland under Gen. Abdourahamane Tiani, who was sworn in last year for a renewable five-year presidential term. The report says political parties were dissolved in 2025, while media, civil society groups and NGOs have faced tighter controls.

On security, Liman-Tinguiri told RFI that attacks and deaths have increased since the coup, citing publicly available ACLED conflict data. He said jihadist violence has expanded geographically, with the Tillabéri region in western Niger particularly badly hit. Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso — all under military rule — have deepened cooperation through the Alliance of Sahel States after leaving Ecowas.

The report also notes that Niger’s economy avoided the collapse some expected after sanctions and aid cuts. Liman-Tinguiri estimated growth at 9% to 10% in 2024 and about 7% in 2025, driven largely by oil and the Niger-Benin pipeline. He argued, however, that converting growth into better living conditions depends on government policy, not oil production alone.