Chad, Niger, Cameroon host 218,000 Nigerian refugees

ABOUT 218,000 Nigerians are living in three neighbouring countries of Cameroon, Chad and Niger Republic as refugees.

  United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) Country Representative, Anthonio Canhandula, disclosed this  in Abuja yesterday at a consultative meeting on Global Compact on Refugees (GCR).

  Urging Nigeria to expedite action towards creating conditions that would facilitate return of the refugees to the country, Canhandula stated that Nigeria has 94,000 refugees in Cameroon, 12,000 in Chad and 112,000 in Niger Republic.

  “Nigerian refugees in Cameroon, 94,000, Nigerian refugees in Chad, 12,000, Nigeria refugees in Niger, 112,000 and I am talking of the North-east crisis, because there is another crisis in the North-west in Sokoto and Zamfara which has created another crisis of internally displaced population of a figure we don’t have,” the country representative said.

  According to him, Nigeria is currently housing 46,000 refugees from Anglophone Cameroon, which is spread across Benue, Cross River and Taraba States, commending Nigeria’s efforts at implementing the global compact, which is aimed at uplifting refugees and Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs).

  “We are working hand in glove with the local authorities to ensure that refugees are positively occupied in seeking self-reliance, be it in farming or other income generating occupations.

A lot of refugees have become accustomed to aid that they would refuse and prefer to stay in the camp, waiting for the monthly assistance,” he continued.