Press announcement
International SOS Operational Situation Update - Niger
Updated
International SOS has been supporting our clients affected by the coup in Niger since 26 July 2023. Following the imposition of sanctions, border closures and threats of military intervention by neighbouring members of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), we stood up a multi-disciplinary crisis management team to oversee all requests for assistance and information. Most requests have been for support with safe movement, evacuation options and advice to enable client crisis decision-making.
We have 24/7 dedicated operational, medical and security staff working on the incident response. We have successfully conducted a cross-border land evacuation mission from Niamey to Cotonou, Benin, in cooperation with our retained security partner on the ground. During the open airspace window, we have supported safe movements to/from the airport and facilitated an international evacuation out of the country by a commercial carrier. We are continually verifying information about the situation on the ground to support our operational planning and inform client decision-making. We are also in regular contact with our charter operators to reaffirm their capabilities and likely lead times so we can take advantage of air space openings and liaise with Government contacts to facilitate access to evacuation flights.
Our priority focus is supporting clients with their remaining workforce in the country. We are proactively communicating with clients daily to understand their needs and to discuss options for evacuation. We have a proven land evacuation route and can support clients wishing to leave via land, particularly while airspace is closed. However, it remains difficult to predict when airspace will reopen and under what conditions flights will be able to operate. We stay in close contact with charter operators and commercial aviation to understand their planning.
We will continue to assess and evolve capability based on client needs. With many clients standing fast, our capability to offer supply drops is being assessed. We are also planning for onward assistance for clients once they reach an international safe haven. We are working with International SOS staff across the region, particularly in Nigeria and Ghana, to ensure we are ready to support with onward logistics or healthcare arrangements.
We are continuously monitoring the situation and verifying information via our sources on the ground in Niger and neighbouring countries. We are also leveraging our teams around the world to assess the likely international response and impact on the security situation on the ground. Our team has developed potential scenarios for the trajectory of the crisis. This information feeds into our planning and regularly updated advice to our clients. Continuous assessment of the risks in the country led us to raise our advice to Standby on 2 August and Evacuate: Non-Essential Staff on 6th August. We continue to monitor and provide alerts on the situation daily.
Should you have any queries please call into the nearest Assistance Center to speak to one of our experts. Our alerts, advice and operational plans are being constantly updated as the situation evolves.
We have 24/7 dedicated operational, medical and security staff working on the incident response. We have successfully conducted a cross-border land evacuation mission from Niamey to Cotonou, Benin, in cooperation with our retained security partner on the ground. During the open airspace window, we have supported safe movements to/from the airport and facilitated an international evacuation out of the country by a commercial carrier. We are continually verifying information about the situation on the ground to support our operational planning and inform client decision-making. We are also in regular contact with our charter operators to reaffirm their capabilities and likely lead times so we can take advantage of air space openings and liaise with Government contacts to facilitate access to evacuation flights.
Our priority focus is supporting clients with their remaining workforce in the country. We are proactively communicating with clients daily to understand their needs and to discuss options for evacuation. We have a proven land evacuation route and can support clients wishing to leave via land, particularly while airspace is closed. However, it remains difficult to predict when airspace will reopen and under what conditions flights will be able to operate. We stay in close contact with charter operators and commercial aviation to understand their planning.
We will continue to assess and evolve capability based on client needs. With many clients standing fast, our capability to offer supply drops is being assessed. We are also planning for onward assistance for clients once they reach an international safe haven. We are working with International SOS staff across the region, particularly in Nigeria and Ghana, to ensure we are ready to support with onward logistics or healthcare arrangements.
We are continuously monitoring the situation and verifying information via our sources on the ground in Niger and neighbouring countries. We are also leveraging our teams around the world to assess the likely international response and impact on the security situation on the ground. Our team has developed potential scenarios for the trajectory of the crisis. This information feeds into our planning and regularly updated advice to our clients. Continuous assessment of the risks in the country led us to raise our advice to Standby on 2 August and Evacuate: Non-Essential Staff on 6th August. We continue to monitor and provide alerts on the situation daily.
Should you have any queries please call into the nearest Assistance Center to speak to one of our experts. Our alerts, advice and operational plans are being constantly updated as the situation evolves.