Violent clashes between military and armed separatists drive 26,000 Cameroonians over the border, where funding is still needed to provide assistance.
Some 26,000 civilians have fled the southwest and northwest regions of Cameroon and sought safety in Nigeria’s south-eastern Akwa Ibom, Cross River, Benue and Taraba states. Women and children account for four-fifths of the population.
Anglophone residents of the country’s restive provinces have long had grievances against the largely Francophone central government. This crisis erupted last year after protests turned violent, with some calling for secession. So far this year, some 400 civilians have been killed in escalating attacks between separatist groups and government forces, according to rights groups.
In March, UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, warned that the plight of the refugees in Nigeria was becoming increasingly desperate. While the government has given land for refugee settlements, it is now fully occupied and more will be developed. At the same time, the provision of shelter, food, water and sanitation by UNHCR and its partners has been constrained by severe underfunding.
As the response struggles, many refugees have found support within host communities. The inhabitants of small border villages share what they have with them – food, a room to sleep or work in the cocoa plantations.
Original source: UNHCR
Published on 11 October 2018
