As authorities close camps and urge people to return to their towns, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for the safe and “dignified” return of persons displaced by war.
Over a decade of combat in the northeast between the military and Boko Haram and the Islamic State West Africa Province has resulted in the deaths of over 40,000 people and the displacement of about 2.2 million people (ISWAP).
Guterres complimented the Governor’s efforts for development in Borno State, the epicenter of the war since 2009, during a visit to a displaced persons camp in Maiduguri.
Authorities in Borno want to eliminate all displaced persons camps by 2026, but humanitarian organizations are concerned about security and circumstances in some of the villages where they would return.
“Let’s do what we have to do about humanitarian support to these camps,” Guterres said.
“But let’s try to find a solution for people, and that solution is to create the conditions, security conditions, development conditions for them to be able to go back home in safety and dignity.”
Officials claim that they only return people to safe areas in order to encourage them to resume farming and wean them off of humanitarian aid.
Guterres also paid a visit to a reintegration camp for former jihadist combatants, where he urged additional assistance for attempts to reintegrate them into society.
In recent months, tens of thousands of Boko Haram members and their families have surrendered.
“I was amazed to see today in the centre [that] those that have been terrorists, they want to integrate in the society and contribute to society. And the policy that is in place here is a policy of reconciliation,” he said.
Guterres spoke with displaced individuals and refugees in western Niger in the morning before traveling to Nigeria.
His regional tour would come to a close on Wednesday.
