Nigeria: returning migrants at risk of new displacement or secondary migration

In 2016, over half a million Nigerians are thought to have set out across the Sahara in a bid to reach Europe, but only around 46,000 Nigerians reached the countries of the European Union, with many Nigerians dying in transit or finding themselves stuck in other countries in the Sahel and Lake Chad region. Displacement is largely caused by the actions of non-state armed groups like Boko Haram, and often closely linked with the need to seek better economic opportunities. Since then, hundreds of millions of euros have been spent on improving Nigerian border control to reduce irregular migration, addressing the root causes of migration, and funding voluntary return and reintegration programmes in the region. Building on previous research by the Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre which showed that many returning migrants are internally displaced after arriving back in their country of origin, this study explores the impact of voluntary and forced return policies and programmes on the sustainability of return and reintegration to countries of origin, and the resulting risk of new displacement or secondary migration.