The National Human Rights Commission dashboard in mid-2025 highlighted significant internal displacement in Nigeria, with Yobe and Benue recording high numbers.

Presenting the dashboard, the executive secretary of NHRC, Tony Ojukwu, said Yobe led with 2,047 internally displaced persons, and Benue also featured prominently, reflecting a broader North-East and North-Central crisis demanding urgent attention.

He also mentioned Adamawa, Akwa Ibom, Benue, Borno, Cross River, Taraba, Kano, Katsina, Sokoto, Yobe, and Zamfara as states showing ongoing humanitarian challenges from conflict, particularly affecting women and children.

“The total number of recorded IDPs is 9,290, with Yobe at 2,047 and Benue at 1,850 amid herder attacks, insurgent raids, and destroyed infrastructure, which impacted negatively on livelihoods.

“These 9,290 IDPs cut across 11 states, with children comprising a huge chunk of 82 per cent of those reached. There are also 215 asylum seekers facing difficulties in registration in Taraba and Cross River States, 583 refugees who are mostly in those states,” he said.

Mr Ojukwu was represented by the director of the Economic, Social and Cultural Rights Department, Harry Obe.

He said there were also 472 returnees, 81 per cent of whom were children struggling with reintegration in the available insecure areas.

Mr Ojukwu noted that, since early this year, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)-backed project has reached over 15,000 more individuals.

He added a 58 per cent surge in violations against children, signalling worsening vulnerabilities from violence, climate shocks, and food insecurity.

”Over 1,800 human rights violations emerged as top concerns: 530 cases of denied food and shelter in Benue, Taraba, and Kano. 278 freedom-of-movement restrictions tied to insecurity in Yobe, 195 gender-based violence incidents, and 324 barriers to education threatening a generation in Kano and Taraba.

”However, NHRC field teams resolved 372 cases, referred 1,157 to agencies, conducted 104 detention visits reaching 326 detainees, and held 331 community outreaches for 6,551 people on GBV prevention and rights reporting,” Mr Ojukwu said.

He decried the persistent challenges faced by monitors, including transport shortages, data costs, and security risks. He also commended the monitors’ resilience and UNHCR’s support amid budgetary strains.

He called on the federal and state governments to domesticate the Kampala Convention, integrate NHRC data into humanitarian plans, and bolster security for returnees. He reaffirmed the commission’s push for data-driven protection for Nigeria’s 6.7 million displaced persons.

Mr Ojukwu further called for strengthened inter-agency coordination at the federal, state, and local levels to scale up child protection services. He added to address GBV survivor needs, close documentation gaps for asylum seekers, and enhance detention oversight.

He pledged the commission’s commitment to refining data quality, referral pathways, and community-based monitoring as national mechanisms, vowing to transform displacement “from despair to dignity” for millions left behind.

(NAN)