L'Association Nigérienne de Défense des Droits de L'Homme (ANDDH; in English, the 'Nigerien Association for the Defence of Human Rights') is an apolitical, non-profit, nondenominational organisation working in the field of human rights by providing training and civic education throughout Niger.
Presence in Niger
ANDDH has eight regional offices, 70 local sections and committees, a training and documentation centre for human rights, and eight legal clinics across the country. They organise radio programs to raise awareness, lead national seminars and workshops to provide training, and publish newsletters, reports, guides and manuals covering the current situation of human rights in Niger. They also have a documentation centre for human rights and legal clinics that contribute directly to conflict prevention in their designated regions.
Documentation Centre for ANDDHThe legal clinic
ANDDH believes that knowledge of the law is a tool for conflict prevention. Generally, in rural areas, people are unaware that there are remedies for land, economic, and family disputes. Because of this, many disputes end in armed conflicts causing death, a lack of security and human rights abuses. ANDDH strives to prevent such situations through the work of its legal clinics. The clinics' roles is to provide information, and they regularly organise training in human rights. This involves informing people about national and international human rights laws and norms, so that such behaviours and attitudes are adopted as a way of life.
The clinics also provide guidance and counselling, and lead people to pathways of recovery. The legal clinics can give precise information regarding legal options available following complaints and rights violations, and it may also lead them to exercise legal remedies in such cases. The clinic provides these services to the population free of charge.
Legal clinic facilitator for ANDDHThe clinic's aims are to promote the safety of people and property, contribute to the participation of the population in the process of decentralisation, strengthen the capacity of farming organisations, improve the representation of women in decision-making, increase the local capacity in conflict prevention and management, and allow people to seek legal redress when their rights have been violated.
Legal clinic training topics include:
- Introduction to human rights
- Information on non-violent conflict management
- Procedures for filing complaints for violations of human and children's rights
- Remedies in the courts
- The observation of a fair trial
- Women in leadership
- Other related topics
