Fellow’s Brief: Addressing the Humanitarian Needs of Forced Rural-to-City Migrants in North-West Nigeria with a Focus on Mental Health Vulnerability

This brief explores the humanitarian needs of forced rural area-to-city migrants in the north-west of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, with an emphasis on their vulnerability to mental health challenges. The brief presents key considerations in addressing the humanitarian needs and vulnerabilities of the forced migrants. The focus is on people displaced between 2021 and 2024, a period that has witnessed a surge in this form of migration.

Calling for action to address the needs of these hitherto underserved internally displaced people (IDPs), the brief is targeted at the Government of Nigeria (especially the National Emergency Management Agency), relevant United Nations agencies (UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, United Nations Human Rights Council, UNICEF and International Organization for Migration) and other relevant international and local actors in the humanitarian space in Nigeria.