Orange employees in Niger began a two-day strike on Tuesday August 20. Objective: to obtain salary negotiations and to discuss the future of the Nigerien subsidiary of the French company, in negotiation with minority shareholders of Orange Niger concerning its sale.

"We launched this (Tuesday) morning a two-day strike which is widely followed throughout the territory," said Ali Hachimou, staff representative of Orange Niger. According to him, 388 of the approximately 530 employees of Orange Niger have joined the social movement.

Communications on the Orange network "are not yet paralyzed", but "if we are not satisfied, we will renew the strike", he warned.

The strikers demand "the resumption of negotiations" on "the revision of a salary agreement", started before the closure, in November 2018, of the company by the Nigerien tax authorities for "non-payment of tax", explained Ali Hachimou .

These negotiations could not resume after the reopening of the company due to a "preventive settlement" by management, suspending for five months "any action on the company's finances", he explained.

Negotiations with minority shareholders
“Orange Niger is facing significant financial difficulties due to difficult market conditions,” reacted Nathalie Chevrier, press officer for Orange in Paris.

Launched in 2008, Orange Niger has 2.4 million customers for more than 52,000 direct and indirect jobs in Niger, according to its management.

The strikers also want their jobs to be preserved as part of a possible contract between Orange and a buyer. “Orange Niger has decided to sell assets (…), we learned that only 120 jobs would be maintained by the new buyer after two years” of management, added Ali Hachimou.

According to the exclusive news site, Jeune Afrique Business+, it is with its minority shareholders that Orange is negotiating the sale of its subsidiary in Niger, and no longer with Telecel, controlled by Niel Finance and Services, previously approached. The Nigerian businessman Mohamed Rissa and the Malian Moctar Thiam have just exercised their right of first refusal, according to our information. Orange, whose financial department manages the file directly, declined to comment.

Tax adjustment
The group only indicated that it favors "the search for a partner capable of supporting the recovery and development of the company", explained to AFP Nathalie Chevrier. “In any case, Orange Niger has made the preservation of jobs an essential condition for the resumption of its activities,” she assured.

In November 2018, the Nigerien tax authorities closed the premises of Orange Niger in Niamey for 40 days for "non-payment of tax". The Nigerian subsidiary of Orange had described this closure as "questionable", following a tax adjustment of 22 billion CFA francs (33 million euros) which represented "nearly 50% (of its) turnover".

Orange Niger had also warned that "the continuity of the company" was "seriously threatened by these unilateral and disproportionate decisions".