Political Geographer & Consultant

Rhoumour Ahmet Tchilouta, a native of Agadez, Niger, is a Political Geographer with expertise in migration, border policies, and the socio-political impact of resource extraction in the Saharo-Sahelian region. He earned a joint Ph.D. in Geography from Grenoble Alpes University (France) and Abdou Moumouni University (Niger), focusing on how externalized migration policies shape Niger’s border governance and socio-economic landscape.
Dr. Ahmet Tchilouta is currently a Research Fellow in the program Mapping Hostile Terrains: Resource Extraction, Deportation, and the (Im-)Mobility of Artisanal Gold Miners in the Niger-Algeria Borderlands, led by Border Forensics and LIMINAL Lab, University of Bologna. This research forms part of the broader HEMIG: Hostile Environments – The Political Ecology of Migration and Border Violence, a Horizon Europe-ERC initiative directed by LIMINAL Lab. His work within this project investigates the interconnected dynamics of artisanal mining, forced migration, and border militarization, with an emphasis on the ecological and political effects of these processes in the borderlands.
Dr. Ahmet Tchilouta is also affiliated with the PACTE Research Center, a social sciences research unit associated with the National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS), Grenoble Alpes University, and Sciences Po Grenoble. His research aims to critically engage with migration policies and their socio-political consequences, particularly by emphasizing Niger’s agency within its complex geopolitical environment.

Research Focus and Areas of Expertise

Dr. Ahmet Tchilouta’s research primarily focuses on the socio-political and geopolitical dynamics of the Sahel region, with a particular emphasis on Niger. He is engaged in exploring the challenges of migration, border management, and security within the framework of Niger-European Union cooperation, and its broader implications on Niger’s sovereignty. Alongside these geopolitical issues, his interests also encompass analyzing the socio-political and security impacts of artisanal gold mining in the Sahara, as well as the wider socio-political issues, including national and transnational organized crime, such as human trafficking and smuggling, in the region.

Educational Background and Specializations

Dr. Ahmet Tchilouta has a solid academic background, holding a Master’s degree in Geography, Planning, Environment and Development, with a focus on innovation and territorial – creativity and policy design. He also holds a Master’s degree in Social Sciences, with a focus on the sociology of innovation and social reconfiguration. He also holds a Master of Business Administration (MBA) majoring in project management. This academic foundation underpins his diverse research interests and professional expertise.

Biography

Previous Academic and Professional Engagements

Prior to his current position at the University of Bologna, Dr. Ahmet Tchilouta career included roles as a doctoral researcher at the PACTE Research Center at the Grenoble Alpes University and the Groupe d’Études et de Recherches Migrations, Espace et Société (GERMES) at the University of Abdou Moumouni. His experience also included serving as the lead researcher at Border Forensics (BF), along with a period as a Visiting Scholar within the Sahel Research Group at the University of Florida. He has also worked as consultant and expert for several international organizations, including the Agence Française de Développement Group (AFD), the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime (GI-TOC), Statewatch and The Transnational Institute (TNI), and was a Junior Fellow at the Open Diplomacy Institute.

Media Recognition and Impact of Research Work

Dr. Ahmet Tchilouta’s research has garnered attention from national and international media outlets such as The New York Times, Politiken, Trouw, Zeit Online, and others, demonstrating the importance and impact of his work in advancing understanding of the complex dynamics of the Sahara-Sahel region.