IOM REGIONAL RESPONSE

SITUATION REPORT │ 21 February - 22 March 2015

P A G E 1

SITUATION OVERVIEW

Over the course of 2014 and the first quarter of 2015, humanitarian needs in the Lake Chad region, including Nigeria’s North East and neighbouring Cameroon, Chad and Niger have been growing, with widespread internal and cross-border displacement caused primarily by the Boko Haram insurgency. A crisis long in the making but largely ignored until late 2014 is now at a critical stage and receiving increased international attention.

IOM’s emergency programming in Nigeria commenced in mid-2014, focusing first on psychosocial assistance and followed by the launch of the Displacement Tracking Matrix (DTM) later in the year. Recognizing the regional character of the crisis, IOM undertook a crisis assessment mission covering Nigeria, Niger, Cameroon and Chad from 23rd January until 6th of February 2015, formulating recommendations for IOM’s regional response. With the financial support of MEFM, IOM’s internal loan mechanism, IOM missions in all four countries have since been working to further enhance their response capacity through the deployment of surge support staff and active engagement in coordination fora to assess needs and coordinate response strategies.

Last week, IOM’s Director of Operations and Emergencies, Mohammed Abdiker, visited Nigeria together with Emergency Directors of nine other agencies. Reflecting on the current situation, he insisted on the need to continue ensuring presence on the ground, as close as possible to where humanitarian needs have been identified. Hence IOM is in the process of establishing new offices in Yola, Bauchi, and, security permitting, in Maiduguri.

IOM staff distribute emergency shelter and NFI kits to displaced

households from Michika and Madagali in Yola, Adamawa © IOM 2015

Region: IOM steps up surge capacity in Nigeria and

neighbouring countries, deploying 13 international

staff to date.

Nigeria: DTM Round 2 identified 1,188,018 internally

displaced persons (IDPs) in the North East Region of

Nigeria.

Emergency shelter and NFI kits distributed to 150

households in Yola, Adamawa.

Cameroon: Sub office is established in Maroua and

DTM roll out ready to begin

Niger: IOM Niger distributes shelter and NFI kits to

15,400 IDPs in Diffa.

Chad: IOM Chad provided transportation and NFI

assistance for 30 returnees from Baga-Sola to Mayo

Kebbi Est.

Mr. Abdiker highlighted the importance of ensuring coherence of response strategies between those operations launched within Nigeria and those aimed at displaced populations in Niger, Chad and Cameroon. To this end and to capture critical displacement information, IOM has begun to also roll out its DTM mechanism in neighbouring countries. The Director further emphasized the need to provide adequate security management support to relief workers on the ground. Furthermore, he noted IOM’s current positive engagement with national disaster management and response authorities, and highlighted the need to continue working in close collaboration with these entities to ensure ownership of the response at national level and advocate for consideration of the humanitarian imperative within government security plans.

Continued and additional violence is feared in the context of Nigeria’s general election, (re)scheduled for 28th March 2015. The security situation also remains volatile in the three neighbouring countries, with feared cross-border infiltrations by Boko Haram elements and increasingly strained host communities, who share already scarce resources with the displaced. More support is needed to strengthen existing local and international response actors and address the dire needs of affected populations.

DISPLACEMENT PATTERNS

In Nigeria, DTM Round 2 identified 1,188,018 internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the North East Region of Nigeria covering Adamawa, Bauchi, Borno, Gombe, Taraba and Yobe states. Combined with data from NEMA collected in the mid-belt states, the total number of IDPs reaches 1,235,294 IDPs. The highest number of IDPs are in Borno (672,714 IDPs), followed by Adamawa (220,159 IDPs) and Yobe (135,810 IDPs). In Cameroon, estimates by national authorities, WFP, ICRC and UNHCR indicate around 117,000 IDPs and returnees, as well as 66,000 refugees. In Niger, agencies estimate that there are about 105,000 refugees and returnees as well as more than 10,000 IDPs due to the Nigeria crisis. In Chad, some locations, such as Baga Sola, have tripled in population size due to recent arrivals of IDPs, refugees, returnees and other country nationals.

NIGERIA

In the context of the Nigeria crisis, the DTM is becoming the reference humanitarian tool for response planning, prioritization and fundraising. The DTM was rolled out since late 2014. Two DTM reports have been published in 2015, highlighting the number, location, origin, as well as priority needs of internally displaced people (IDPs) in the six most

affected states of the country’s north east. In camps and camp-like settings, the DTM has highlighted gaps in access to service provision in all sectors. Data collection for DTM round three is ongoing.

IOM and NEMA jointly co-lead the emergency shelter (ES) / NFI and the CCCM sectors. To enable well-coordinated humanitarian interventions, IOM convenes and actively participates in ES/NFI and CCCM meetings at capital and field level.

Ahead of the 19th March and future ES/NFI distributions in Adamawa and Borno, IOM has assessed 484 IDP families from Adamawa and Borno in coordination with SEMA. Community meetings were organized to validate beneficiary lists and sensitize targeted communities on items to be distributed as well as other distribution modalities, including community participation. 150 ES/NFI NFI kits were distributed in and around Yola town to IDP families originating from Michika and Madagali LGAs in Adamawa and living in non-camp settings. A total of 1120 individuals benefited from this distribution. A

second round of distributions is scheduled for 24th/25th March.

IOM’s psychosocial support activities are ongoing in Maiduguri and are being expanded to cover Adamawa. Through psychosocial mobile teams, IOM is assisting the families of the abducted Chibok girls, as well as other Boko Haram affected communities. From 21st-22nd March, 30 health practitioners, psychologists, social workers and religious leaders participated in a training on Mental Health and Psychosocial Support organized by IOM in Yola.

CAMEROON

IOM’s office in Cameroon has recently expanded its focus (previously dedicated to stranded migrants in the east of Cameroon in the context of the CAR crisis), to also cover the

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FUNDING REQUIREMENTS

(Based on current SRP figures, which will be revised)

US US US 2 rece e 2 rece e re ue e 1 re ue e 1

Country Sector responsibility

Nigeria CCCM co-lead; Shelter/NFI co-lead

Niger Shelter/NFI co-lead

Chad CCCM/Shelter co-lead

Cameroon Protection (DTM); Shelter/NFI under discussion

Emergency shelter and NFI kit distribution in Yola, Adamawa © IOM 2015

emerging needs of IDPs and returnees in response to the Nigeria crisis.

Recognizing the lack of a harmonized standard approach to IDP data collection, the HCT requested a DTM roll out to provide reliable information for targeted humanitarian interventions. IOM is beginning to roll out the DTM in four departments of Cameroon’s Extreme North: Logon-et-Chari, Mayo-Sava, Mayo-Tsanaga and Diamare. Preparations have been made for the first round of data collection, which will commence this week.

IOM is in the process of opening an office in Maroua and is seeking funds to expand its programming to also cover emergency shelter and NFI interventions.

CHAD

IOM Chad participated in the Joint Interagency mission to Lac region from February 21st to 26th, which highlighted that the number of displaced is overstretching the capacity of public services and the closure of the border has a negative impact on refugees, returnees, IDPs and local host communities alike.

300 returnees are in Baga Sola, Tchoukoutalia, Ngouboua and Kaiga and wish to return to their areas of origin in Mayo Kebbi as soon as possible. IOM mobilized buses and trucks since 2nd March to facilitate their return and undertake NFI distribution. 30 returnees have been transported and received NFI assistance to date.

IOM Chad completed a joint profiling exercise with UNHCR and CNARR in the city of Baga-Sola. In total, 812 returnees (150 households) have been registered.

NIGER

IOM coordinates the national Shelter/NFI working group and is co-lead of the regional Shelter/NFI working group in Diffa. IOM prepared shelter kits and distribution for 2,200 NFI kits to displaced households, as well as 1,983 tents and emergency transitional shelter kits for displaced and host families in Diffa. In total, 15,400 IDPs were targeted during the distribution from 16th-21st of March.

The situation in the city of Diffa remains volatile, but has stabilized somewhat. Businesses are reopening and people are returning. Upon request from UNHCR, IOM has undertaken preparations to facilitate the return to Diffa of people who fled to Zinder during Boko Haram’s cross-border attacks in February.

There is no unified system for IDP data collection, analysis and dissemination in country, hence information on displacement patterns remains ad-hoc. IOM is seeking funding to roll out the DTM in the area between Zinder and Diffa.

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Donor Relations Division | + 41 22 717 92 71 | drd@iom.int

Preparedness and Response Division | +41 22 717 91 11 | prd@iom.int

Returnee receives NFI assistance in Baga Sola, Chad. © IOM 2015

Distribution of shelter/NFI kits in Diffa, Niger. © IOM 2015