Report

Forced displacement and access to housing, land and property in the Far North of Cameroon

Published 12. Jun 2019
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The ongoing armed conflict in the Lake Chad Basin region has caused mass displacement in northeast Nigeria and the Far North of Cameroon forcing people to flee the violence and abandon their homes. This Far North of Cameroon is currently hosting some 89,000 Nigerian refugees, 236,000 internally displaced persons (IDPs) and 59,000 returnees. The situation remains fragile with an estimated total of 2.1 million in need of assistance.

The vast majority of IDPs and 30,000 out-of-camp refugees have found refuge in host communities. NRC’s research from 2018 shows that many have no formal or written agreements to secure their tenure. Limited access to agricultural land and livelihoods opportunities, along with protracted displacement, is exhausting financial means and placing additional burdens on already scarce resources of displaced persons and the communities hosting them. This situation is increasing the risk of forced eviction and secondary displacement and having a negative impact on living conditions and social cohesion.

The Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC)’s Information, Counselling and Legal Assistance (ICLA) programme has carried out an assessment of HLP challenges for communities affected by displacement across the departments of Mayo-Tsanaga, Mayo-Sava and Logone-et-Chari in the Far North of Cameroon. This report and briefing note present the findings and recommendations of this research.