Boko Haram: IDP Population Rises To 2.2m, Says UNHCR

RELIEF MATERIALS SET FOR DISTRIBUTION TO INTERNALLY DISPLACED PERSONS (IDPs) BY THE RED CROSS SOCIETY OF NIGERIA AND UNITED NATIONS HIGH COMMISSIONER FOR REFUGEES (UNHCR) IN GOMBE ON TUESDAY

THE population of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in the Northeast has risen to 2.2 million, the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) said yesterday.

UNHCRs Representative to Nigeria Ms Angele Dikongue- Atangana gave the statistics in Abuja at the commission’s yearly stakeholders’ briefing.

Ms. Dikongue- Atangana, however, said that the population rise at the IDP camps was not due to new displacement, saying the agency would not relent in its humanitarian support to the country.

She urged UNHCR partners and donor agencies to assist refugees and displaced persons.

Her words: “The number of IDPs is not really increasing as a result of new displacement.

“There could be some relatively small new displacement in the course of combating insurgency and knowing that the insurgents themselves still remain active, especially in this hit and run tactic.
“The number is increasing specifically because regaining control of the territory by the military opened further access for the humanitarian officials so they can count many more IDPs, be they old IDPs or very recent ones.”

The country representative disclosed that UNHCR had recorded success in its 2015 operational activities in the country, including addressing refugee and IDP plights, advocacy on statelessness and collaboration with the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).