Nigeria — COVID-19 Situational Analysis 4: North Central and North West (September 2021)

This Round 4 of the COVID-19 Situation Analysis is based on the assessment of knowledge, practice and impact of the pandemic on Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in conflict-affected communities in the geopolitical zones north-central and north-west Nigeria. Conducted by the Displacement Tracking Matrix (DTM) unit of the International Organization for Migration (IOM), the report covers the period between 21 June and 27 July 2021 and reflects trends from the states Benue, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Nasarawa, Plateau, Sokoto and Zamfara.

 

A total of 94,518 respondents – or 11% of the total IDP population in north-central and north-west Nigeria - were interviewed on a range of COVID-19 related indicators. Key informant interviews and focus group discussions were the primary methods used for the assessment and the findings were corroborated with physical on-ground observations.

 

The information collated and analyzed in this report includes COVID-19 awareness among IDPs, communication mediums used to receive information, exposure to communication on risks associated with COVID-19, mitigation measures, health centre’s preparedness in managing confirmed cases of COVID-19, effects of the pandemic on day-to-day activities and access to infection and prevention control facilities. All the information presented in this report was assessed for both IDPs living in camps/camp-like settings and IDPs living among host communities.

 

COVID-19 threatens to deepen the humanitarian crisis in north-central and north-west Nigeria, zones that already are afflicted with multidimensional crises, rooted in historic ethno-social cleavages, and exasperated by recent large scale displacements. To better understand the scope of displacement and assess the needs of the affected populations, IOM has been implementing the DTM programme since September 2014, in collaboration with the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) and relevant State Emergency Management Agencies (SEMAs).

 

The main objective of this report is the provide accurate and detailed information and support the Government and humanitarian partners in providing an adequate and timely response to the needs of forcibly displaced populations.