When Ali Mahaman Lamine Zeine stepped up to the podium at the 81st United Nations General Assembly, he delivered what has become a familiar ritual for Niger’s military regime: a sweeping ode to national sovereignty. Before an audience of international envoys, the junta’s prime minister recycled the well-worn slogans of the National Council for the Safeguard of the Homeland (CNSP) — “reclaiming national resources,” “economic independence,” and “breaking with neocolonialism.”
But once the cameras stopped rolling and the lyrical flights were shelved, the hard numbers caught up with the generals in Niamey. Under General Abdourahamane Tiani and his government, the crown jewels of Niger’s economy are sinking into chaotic management. Behind the patriotic veneer, the industrial track record of SOMAÏR and SONIDEP reveals a financial fiasco that is beginning to cost the Nigerien people dearly.
The SOMAÏR meltdown: from “reclamation” to uranium’s cardiac arrest
For decades, uranium from Arlit fueled a rhetoric of resentment. By taking operational control of the Société des Mines de l’Aïr (SOMAÏR) and sidelining its historic French partner Orano, Tiani and his clique promised a financial windfall for the country.
The outcome on the ground has been catastrophic: uranium production has plummeted by roughly 80 percent since the new authorities took over.
- Broken supply chains: The inability to deliver essential chemical reagents (such as sulfuric acid) and logistical blockages at the borders have paralyzed the Arlit site.
- Commercial bottleneck: Lacking solid distribution networks and reliable export certificates, tons of uranium concentrate (yellowcake) remain stockpiled on site, unsellable.
- Immediate social impact: Local subcontractors are no longer paid, jobs are evaporating, and the tax revenues expected to fund hospitals and schools have turned into a mirage.
Changing the flag on a factory gate does not make its machines run. In mining engineering, the amateurism of slogans is no substitute for technical competence and rigorous management.
SONIDEP and the mystery of the 25 billion FCFA black hole
If uranium management amounts to a shipwreck, the oil file borders on a state scandal. The Société Nigérienne des Produits Pétroliers (SONIDEP), thrust by the CNSP into the heart of the crude oil marketing strategy — notably via the new giant pipeline to Benin’s coast — was supposed to be the financial engine of this new era.
Yet, according to internal balance sheets and progress reports, SONIDEP is showing an abysmal loss estimated at more than 25 billion CFA francs.
That figure alone illustrates the bankruptcy of the military management model: on one side, SOMAÏR sees its production collapse by nearly 80 percent, destroying the added value of the uranium sector; on the other, SONIDEP, supposed to reap the fruits of national oil, is piling up a record deficit of 25 billion FCFA instead of feeding state coffers. Together, these two public flagships symbolize a veritable system of evaporating public resources under the cover of illusory nationalism.
How can a state company holding a monopoly on black gold distribution — in a country supposedly becoming a major oil exporter — manage the feat of accumulating such a financial abyss? The absence of certified accounting statements and the oil ministry’s radio silence fuel all suspicions: mismanagement, questionable private contracts, improvised intermediaries, and overbilling.
Sovereignty cannot be a shield for incompetence
Faced with this industrial rout, the reflex of the Tiani-Zeine tandem is well-oiled: systematically blame ECOWAS, international sanctions, the “invisible hand of imperialism,” or the management of previous regimes.
At some point, the leaders led by Abdourahamane Tiani must answer to their population:
- Where are the audit reports promised with great fanfare after the July 2023 coup?
- How are Niger’s oil and uranium sales contracts actually negotiated?
- What exactly are the few revenues collected by the Treasury used for if the major state companies are going bankrupt?
True sovereignty of a people is measured by concrete actions and results: public companies that create value, salaries paid on time, investments in basic services, and full transparency on public finances.
By using the patriotic argument to mask the bankruptcies of SOMAÏR and SONIDEP, the CNSP distorts the very meaning of the word sovereignty. The Nigerien people do not feed on speeches at the UN: they need an economy that works.
