- The number of Nigerian refugees voluntarily returning home more than doubled in the first quarter of 2026, rising from 1,705 in February to 3,510 by April.
- While refugees are returning, the population of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) within Nigeria surged by 166,795 during the same period, reaching a total of over 3.7 million.
- Banditry in the North West and long-standing insurgency in the North East remain the primary drivers of displacement.
- To address the crisis, the World Bank approved $300 million in financing for the Solutions for the Internally Displaced and Host Communities Project to benefit approximately 7.4 million people.
New data from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) reveals a complex displacement landscape in Nigeria during the first quarter of 2026.
Eko Hot Blog reports that the while the country saw a 106% increase in the voluntary repatriation of refugees from neighboring Cameroon, Chad, and Niger, internal stability continues to be threatened by rising displacement figures domestically.
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All documented returnees are currently being resettled in Borno State, which remains the epicenter of the insurgency that has plagued the Lake Chad Basin for over a decade.
In contrast to the rising returnee numbers, the domestic IDP population leapt from 3,544,519 in February to 3,711,314 in March.
The North West region experienced the sharpest spike, with an additional 143,189 people displaced in just one month due to persistent banditry across Zamfara, Katsina, and Sokoto states.
Security incidents in the North East also increased by 27% compared to the previous year, leading to hundreds of casualties and over 12,000 new displacements since the start of 2026.
Nigeria currently hosts roughly 3.5% of the world’s forcibly displaced population.
While the number of Nigerian refugees in neighboring countries slightly declined to 405,062, Niger Republic still hosts the largest share with over 258,000 individuals.
As the government and international agencies grapple with these shifting figures, the $300 million World Bank project is expected to provide a community-driven approach to assist both IDPs and their host communities across all tiers of government.
