As it gradually severs ties with former colonial ruler France, Niger has suspended all cooperation with the international organisation of Francophone nations (OIF), according to its military leaders.
According to a representative for the ruling junta in Niger, the 88-member body “has always been used by France as an instrument to defend French interests” late on Sunday.
The coup in July that saw the junta seize power was sharply denounced by France and other Western allies. It quickly drove out French forces that had been assisting in quelling an Islamist insurgency that had been raging in the nation of West Africa for ten years.
Because of the coup, the OIF had already halted most of its collaboration with Niger last week, but it said it would continue with the programmes “directly benefiting civilian populations, and those contributing to the restoration of democracy”.
A statement released by the junta said, “The government of Niger calls on the African people to decolonise their minds and promote their own national languages in accordance with the ideas of the founding fathers of Pan-Africanism.”
In a separate statement released on Sunday, the junta stated that the duration of the transition would be decided upon following an inclusive national dialogue, but it had not yet decided how long it would stay in power. When the dialogue would occur was not specified.
