By Lexi Elo
Terrorist attacks have been identified as the most leading factor responsible for the displacement of persons in Nigeria besides other factors, a Special edition poll conducted by NOIPolls in partnership with Social Welfare Network Initiative and Africare, has revealed.
More findings revealed that while cases of Internally Displaced Persons (IIDPs) may not be common in some parts of Nigeria, awareness of the phenomenon is not limited to regions with high cases of IDPs as about three-fourths (73 percent) of the adult population are aware of the cases of IDPs in Nigeria.
The polls revealed that almost half (49 percent) of respondents who showed awareness of the cases of IDPs have either had a personal encounter or have seen cases of IDPs in Nigeria. This is mostly true for the North-East region (98 percent) given the current state of insecurity in this region, the report states however, some respondents testified they were IDPs themselves.
Findings also show that awareness on the cases of IDPs in Nigeria may not necessarily be through personal experiences (but through other means such as the media) as most respondents from the Southern regions who showed awareness have minimal experiences with cases of IDPs.
An assessment of the visibility of IDPs to Nigerians revealed that about one-third of respondents who have experienced cases of IDPs confirmed they have seen between 16-20 IDPs in their locality within the past three months, while a significant proportion of respondents from the North-East and North-West zones indicated above 50 persons. Respondents also confirmed that the IDPs are mostly seen in ‘People’s homes’ (57 percent) compared to ‘Resettlement camps’ (27 percent) and other.
In the rise against growing cases of IDPs in Nigeria, the vast majority of Nigerians irrespective of gender age and geo-political zones would support the introduction of a law to protect the rights of IDPs in Nigeria. These were some of the key findings from IDPs in Nigeria Poll conducted in the week of February 9th 2015.
According to the Guiding Principles of the United Nations High Commission for Refugees on Internal Displacement, internally displaced persons are persons or groups of persons who have been forced or obliged to flee or to leave their homes or places of habitual residence, in particular as a result of or in order to avoid the effects of armed conflict, situations of generalized violence, violations of human rights or natural or human-made disasters, and who have not crossed an internationally recognized state border.
The Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC), reported that there were 33.3 million internally displaced people in the world with 12.5 million IDPs in the 21 sub-Saharan countries at the end of 2013, translating to more than a third of the global total. Nigeria, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Sudan had the largest populations of IDPs in Africa, and were closely followed by Somalia and the Central African Republic (CAR).
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Figures provided by the Nigerian government on internal displacement for the first time since the commencement of IDMC’s monitoring, escalated the overall figure for the region by 3.3 million from 10.4 million at the end of 2012; thus placing Nigeria at the top of the chart with the largest IDP population in the region.
Several factors have led to the displacement of persons across the various regions in Nigeria. In the South-South region, Rivers, Bayelsa, and Delta states which are considered to be the core of the Niger-Delta region have been the scene political issues and oil wealth. A number of reported IDPs in this region has varied from 1,000 people sheltering in schools and hospitals to about 10,000 residents believed to have fled and unable to return to their homes.
On the other hand, the incessant terrorist attacks from the Islamic group Boko Haram as well as several communal and religious clashes in the Northern parts of Nigeria especially the North-East region, have led to the death and displacement of thousands of people.
Against this background, NOIPolls in partnership with Social Welfare Network Initiative and Africare, conducted a special edition poll on IDPs in Nigeria. The poll sought to measure the awareness and knowledge of Nigerians on cases of IDPs and the factors mostly responsible for the displacement of persons in Nigeria, as well as gauge the support of Nigerians on a law that protects the rights of IDPs in Nigeria.
