A/HRC/41/38/Add.1 especially the readmission of migrants.9 As for the African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States, the Group wishes for the future agreement to take better account of migration between countries of the Group and to prohibit the use of development aid as a means of negotiating border controls or returns to the country of origin. 10 The European Parliament recommended that the new agreement provide for the management of regular migration to counterbalance the importance given to the fight against irregular migration. 11 D. Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development 14. The Government of the Niger was actively involved in the consultations and negotiations on the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration. The Niger was a strong advocate for combating the smuggling of migrants, trafficking in persons and contemporary forms of slavery. At the Intergovernmental Conference to Adopt the Global Compact for Migration, held in Marrakech, Morocco, on 10 and 11 December 2018, the Minister of the Interior highlighted government efforts to implement compact objectives, including objective 9 (through the adoption of Law No. 2015-36 on the Illicit Smuggling of Migrants), objective 11 (by managing 6,000 km of borders with a mobile police force) and objective 21 (by facilitating the return, readmission and reintegration of migrants, with support from IOM). 15. The Special Rapporteur commends the Niger for endorsing the adoption of the Global Compact for Migration at the General Assembly on 19 December 2018 and encourages it to ensure the implementation of the Compact at the national level, for example, through the adoption of a comprehensive national strategy for safe, orderly and regular migration. 16. A significant aim of the Global Compact for Migration is to leverage the potential of migration for the achievement of all the Sustainable Development Goals. Similarly, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development makes a central reference to migration under Goal 10 (to reduce inequality within and among countries). Target 10.7 to facilitate orderly, safe, regular and responsible migration and mobility of people, including through the implementation of planned and well-managed migration policies. E. National legal, policy and institutional framework 1. National legislation and policies 17. The Constitution of 2010 (art. 42 (2)) and the Labour Code of 2012 (Law No. 201245 of 25 September 2012) protect the rights of migrant persons and their families. Law No. 97-016 on Refugee Status of 20 June 1997, and Decree No. 98-382/PRN/MI/AT of 24 December 1998 for its implementation, establish the conditions and procedure for the determination of refugee status, as well as the rights of refugees and asylum seekers. 18. On 26 May 2015, the Niger adopted the Law on the Illicit Smuggling of Migrants. The law’s aim is threefold: to prevent and combat the smuggling of migrants (with penalties from 2 to 10 years of imprisonment); to protect the rights of migrant victims of smuggling (e.g., ensuring their right to compensation); and to promote and facilitate national and international cooperation to prevent and combat the smuggling of migrants. 12 9 10 11 12 See www.euractiv.com/section/development-policy/news/negotiations-on-the-post-cotonouagreement-stumble-on-migration/. See www.europarl.europa.eu/legislative-train/theme-europe-as-a-stronger-global-actor/file-towardspost-cotonou. Ibid. The Protocol against the Smuggling of Migrants by Land, Sea and Air, supplementing the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime, defines smuggling of migrants as “the procurement, in order to obtain, directly or indirectly, a financial or other material benefit, of the 5