A founding member of OHADA and WAEMU, and host country of the Niger Basin Authority, Niger combines civil-law national legislation, uniform OHADA law and WAEMU community law. This page sets out how they fit together, and which prevails in case of conflict.
Select an organization to see its members, or display overlaps with Niger. The map challenge offers six legal geography questions. The map is in French.
A member of eight organizations, Niger is subject to complementary legal regimes: uniform business law (OHADA), economic and monetary union (WAEMU), cooperation with its neighbours (Council of the Entente, AES) and shared management of the Niger River and Lake Chad (NBA, LCBC).
OHADA
founding member (1993)
Organization for the Harmonization of Business Law in Africa
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Seat
Yaoundé (Permanent Secretariat) · 17 Member states
Regulatory approach
Uniform Acts directly applicable without transposition: companies, securities, debt recovery, insolvency, arbitration, general commercial law.
Effect in Nigerien law
Supranationality: Uniform Acts apply notwithstanding any conflicting provision of domestic law, whether earlier or later (Treaty, art. 10).
Court
CCJA (Abidjan): court of cassation for the application of Uniform Acts, in place of the national court of cassation.
Legal data stakes
Foundation of the LegOmnia database under construction: CCJA case law and Nigerien decisions applying the Uniform Acts.
WAEMU
founding member (1994)
West African Economic and Monetary Union
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Seat
Ouagadougou · 8 Member states
Regulatory approach
Directly applicable regulations and directives to be transposed; common competition policy; CFA franc issued by the BCEAO.
Effect in Nigerien law
Primacy of community law: regulations apply without any national transposition measure.
Court
WAEMU Court of Justice (Ouagadougou).
Legal data stakes
Regulations, directives and Commission decisions, notably on competition, taxation and banking law.
AU
founding member of the OAU (1963)
African Union
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Seat
Addis Ababa · 55 Member states
Regulatory approach
Constitutive Act and continental conventions (human rights, cybersecurity, data protection), applicable after signature and ratification.
Effect in Nigerien law
Ratified and published conventions prevail over statutes (Constitution), subject to reciprocity.
Court
African Court on Human and Peoples' Rights (Arusha), within the limits of the ratified protocols.
Legal data stakes
Reference for continental standards, notably on personal data protection.
AfCFTA
State party to the Agreement
African Continental Free Trade Area
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Seat
Accra (Secretariat) · 54 Member states
Regulatory approach
Framework agreement and protocols: goods, services, investment, competition, intellectual property, digital trade.
Effect in Nigerien law
In case of conflict with a regional agreement, the Agreement prevails, except between states that have achieved deeper integration (art. 19), as within WAEMU.
Court
State-to-state dispute settlement mechanism modelled on the WTO.
Legal data stakes
Monitoring of trade commitments and national implementing texts.
Entente
founding member (1959)
Council of the Entente
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Seat
Abidjan · 5 Member states
Regulatory approach
The oldest regional organization in West Africa: development and security cooperation between five states.
Effect in Nigerien law
Cooperation agreements subject to the general treaty regime (Constitution).
Court
No community court.
Legal data stakes
A limited corpus, but useful for cooperation projects between neighbouring states.
NBA
member state; host country
Niger Basin Authority
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Seat
Niamey · 9 Member states
Regulatory approach
Joint management of the Niger River basin between nine states: water resources, infrastructure, environment.
Effect in Nigerien law
Conventions subject to the general treaty regime (Constitution).
Court
No community court.
Legal data stakes
Basin water charter and texts on the management of shared resources.
LCBC
founding member (1964)
Lake Chad Basin Commission
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Seat
N'Djamena · 6 Member states
Regulatory approach
Joint management of the waters and resources of the Lake Chad basin between six states.
Effect in Nigerien law
Conventions subject to the general treaty regime (Constitution).
Court
No community court.
Legal data stakes
Basin conventions and texts on the management of shared resources.
AES
founding member
Confederation of Sahel States
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Seat
— · 3 Member states
Regulatory approach
Confederation bringing together Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger.
Effect in Nigerien law
Instruments subject to the general treaty regime.
Court
No operational common court.
Legal data stakes
A body of texts being built up.
Common pitfalls: Niger is not a member
CEMAC : Economic and monetary union of six Central African states. It also uses a CFA franc, but one issued by the BEAC: Niger belongs to WAEMU and the BCEAO.
WAMZ : West African Monetary Zone, bringing together six states outside the CFA franc, including neighbouring Nigeria. Niger is not a member.
ECCAS : Economic Community of Central African States, of which neighbouring Chad is a member. Niger is not.
OHADA and WAEMU: how they fit together
The eight WAEMU member states, including Niger, also belong to OHADA. Two bodies of community law therefore apply there at the same time, with distinct scopes but points of contact.
Complementarity
OHADA focuses strictly on legal certainty for business and commercial law, while WAEMU has a broader remit: monetary policy, customs union, financial markets, taxation.
Coexistence and conflicts of norms
In the eight countries belonging to both organizations, collisions can arise between OHADA Uniform Acts and WAEMU regulations or directives, for example in accounting or financial law.
A permanent consultation framework
To avoid conflicts of competence and harmonise their action, a Permanent Consultation Framework has been set up between OHADA and the WAEMU institutions.
OHADA Uniform Acts and WAEMU regulations are directly applicable and prevail over any conflicting provision of domestic law, whether earlier or later. WAEMU directives, by contrast, must be transposed.
Acts of the executive and local authorities, adopted in compliance with statutes. An unlawful regulatory act can be annulled.
Legal basis : Principle of legalityGuardian : administrative courts
What about case law? It does not appear in the pyramid, but it shows how each level applies in practice. That is precisely the body of law LegOmnia is working to structure and make accessible.
Test your knowledge
Two interactive exercises: resolve real conflicts between norms, then check what you know about Niger's regional integration.
The norms referee
Score : 0
Case 1/6
A national supreme court ruled on an appeal falling within the CCJA, despite an objection to its jurisdiction.
Which norm or court prevails?
Quiz: regional integration
Score : 0
Question 1/15
Where is the WAEMU Commission based?
Frequently asked questions about Nigerien law
Is Niger a member of CEMAC?
No. Niger is a member of WAEMU (West African Economic and Monetary Union), whose CFA franc (XOF) is issued by the BCEAO, headquartered in Dakar. CEMAC brings together six Central African states, whose CFA franc (XAF) is issued by a different central bank, the BEAC.
Does OHADA law apply in Niger?
Yes. Niger is a founding member of OHADA, whose Treaty was signed in Port Louis in 1993. The Uniform Acts are directly applicable there without transposition, notwithstanding any conflicting provision of domestic law, whether earlier or later (OHADA Treaty, art. 10).
Which court rules in cassation on OHADA law?
The Common Court of Justice and Arbitration (CCJA), based in Abidjan. It rules in cassation on the application of the Uniform Acts, in place of the national court of cassation (Treaty, art. 14), and its judgments are enforceable in all member states (art. 20).
Which community law applies in Niger alongside national law?
OHADA law and WAEMU law, both directly applicable, prevail over conflicting domestic law. Duly ratified and published treaties also prevail over statutes, provided the other party applies them.
Which regional organizations does Niger belong to?
Niger is a member of eight organizations: the African Union, the AfCFTA, OHADA, WAEMU, the Council of the Entente, the Niger Basin Authority, the Lake Chad Basin Commission and the Confederation of Sahel States (AES). It is not a member of CEMAC, the WAMZ or ECCAS.
Where does LegOmnia stand on Nigerien law?
This is one of our priority jurisdictions and its integration is under way. We are building coverage step by step: OHADA law, shared by the 17 member states, is the foundation, progressively enriched with texts and case law specific to Nigerien law. People on the waitlist will be the first to hear about each new milestone. OmniScan can already be deployed there today to digitise and index legal document collections.
Nigerien law, soon at your fingertips
Join the waitlist to be among the first to access LegOmnia legal research on Niger and the OHADA area.
Educational summary; it does not constitute legal advice. References: constitutional text in force, OHADA Treaty (arts. 10, 14, 20), WAEMU Treaty, AfCFTA Agreement (art. 19). Memberships as of October 2026.
Jurisdiction · West Africa