Internally Displaced Persons Camp

Project and Seminar Material for Estate Management

Abstract

The prospect for persons who are already displaced have never being brighter, the world overtime has experienced several natural disasters like floods, hurricanes and landslides, and man-made disaster like wars, political and conflict. Nigeria has not being left out following the study of the recurring conflict such as Boko-haram insurgences, ethno religious crises etc. This study is therefore aimed at providing standard internally displaced person camps with conducive environment.

Research Methods were based on case studies , interview, and internet research with the use of other journals were carried out on various existing and related camp of internally displaced person’s within and outside Nigeria which this was done to ascertain its basic functional requirement, and careful analysis of the site location and design factors were done to provide a conducive environment to the internally displaced persons camp to be sited at Enugu.

The purpose of this will not only help one for planning purpose but will result to ensuring adequate internally displaced persons camp which will grant comfort and joy to the dwellers in this proposed IDPs camp. In this proposed project is highly essential that schools should be provided and skill acquisition program since most problem faced by the displaced person in camps are mainly lack of educational and skill acquisition training.

Chapter One

Introduction

1.1 Background of Study

The world overtime has experienced several disasters, natural ranging from floods, hurricanes, landslides and others; and man-made like wars. These tragedies have result in an increased number of people from their homes and means of livelihood, posing a difficult challenge to the world at large.At the beginning of 2007, there were an estimated 24.5 million people, hounded out of their homes by war or persecution, in at least 52 countries. As outcasts in their own lands, they often have very limited legal or physical protection and face an uncertain future (UNHCR 2007), by the end of 2014 it was estimated 38.2 million IDPs worldwide, the highest level since 1989, and the first year for which statistics on IDPs are available. (“UNHCR – Global Trends –Forced Displacement in 2014”. UNHCR. 18 June 2015.).It is very difficult to get accurate figures for IDPs because their population are not constant, IDPs may be returning home while others are fleeing, others periodically return to IDPs camp to advantage of humanitarian aid. (IDMC 2006).

Africa remains the continent with the highest number of people who have been internally displaced. In 2011, IDMC (internal displacement monitoring centre) monitored displaced persons in the sub-Saharan African countries. There were an estimated 9.7 million IDPs existing in these countries, representing over a third of the world total internally displaced population. Having access this IDPs camp, it was discovered that this camp lack essential services such as water, shelter, healthcare and education (IDMC 2011).

Nigeria is not left out in the recurring conflict such as Boko-haram insurgences, ethno religious crises etc., and natural disasters like landslides, earthquakes, flood etc. This has become a constant internal cankerworm plaguing Nigeria also for decades, and also responsible for displacement of over 1.2 million of their victims (Dada, 2006) In May 2014, According to the United Nation multi sectorial reassessment conducted, that there were 650,000 IDPs in the North east of Nigeria, while in December 2014, the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) reported that 868,335 IDPs had been displaced in the country. (Displacement tracking matrix report (DTM), December 2014). In 2016 , according to humanitarian response 2.2 million Nigerians are Internally displaced in 13 states in the Northern and central of Nigeria, according to round VIII of the Displacement Tracking Matrix 81% of the total number of internally displaced persons (IDPs) are living in Adamawa ,Bornu , Gombe , and Yobe. (Displacement tracking matrix December 2011), yet the bugging issues has persisted and continued to rise currently in 2016, according to the owing high rate of displacements in Nigeria from security challenges in the country, with natural disasters and harsh government resolution especially in Enugu state which just witnessed a terrorist attack in Ukpabi Nimbo community in Uzo-Uwani local government Area of the state, due to these event as resulted to massive churn out of internally displaced persons in Enugu joining to the thousands already displaced persons in Nigeria. (Nkechi June 2016).

1.2 Statement of Problem

The IDPs in Nigeria are highly vulnerable and are suffering from inadequate living standard which includes: discrimination, shelter, healthcare or access to education for children; a lack of personal and property identification documents; and gender-based violence, sexual abuse and increased domestic violence. The IDPs of Enugu are also prone to these problems.

1.3 Significance of the Project

The provision of a standard internally displaced persons camp is very important and will be useful to authorities saddled with the responsibility of managing internally displaced persons. This project analysis’s the current situations of existing IDP camps in Nigeria and compares them with other facilities found in other countries plagued with the problems of displacement and provides the design for a standard IDPs camp that is achieved through effective spatial planning, space organizations and most essentially architectural design considerations.

1.4 Aim and Objectives of the Project

1.4.1 Aim

This project is aimed at providing of standard internally displaced persons camp which will accommodate them during the period of displacements by employing the use of effective space planning, zoning, circulation and other elements of architectural design for displaced persons in Enugu and its surrounding environment.

1.4.2 Objectives

The objectives necessary for achieving the above aim are:

To ensure that the standard internally displaced person’s camp will have all essential amenities for the accommodation of internally displaced persons.
To achieve comfortable movement and circulation of persons within the provided spaces
To ensure adequate circulation is carried out is carried out on site

1.5 Scope of Project

Based on the requirements of an internally displaced persons camp gathered from careful synthesis of detailed studies of existing camps for displaced persons available in Nigeria and around the world, the scope of the project shall encompass the following essential facilities:

Administrative building: includes spaces for keeping information relating to the internally displaced person (such as their date of arrival, state of arrival and around progress since arrival etc.)

Accommodation: Inmates’ dormitories which include segregated areas. These areas would also include showers and toilet with proper sanitation and dinning/multipurpose hall and laundry spaces.

Health care facilities: Hospital / first aid clinic which include bed spaces for illness or injury case and isolation are in situation of contamination.

Ancillary: Schools / training centres which is include classroom for both children and Adult for basic aim of educational and handwork training, Places of worship for basically religious purpose, stores / markets for buying and selling, technical support facilities storage, parking, entrance security.

1.6 Research Methodology

The research adopted quantitative and participatory research methods that embraced the following:

Observational method
Survey method
Archival method

Data for the study were obtained from primary and secondary sources.

Primary Sources:

Primary sources are the direct source of data collection which includes obtaining data from sources like conducting a detailed study on existing internally displaced persons camps and other related facilities, identifying their merits and weaknesses in other to obtain factual information that is vital to the project. This primary source include: Authors field study and various visitations to the area and site, questionnaires, interviews (oral, telephone, television.) Photographs, etc.

Secondary Sources:

Secondary sources are sources of data that are not direct sources but relates to the current study, they are made up of published and unpublished data such as:

Library research, Internet sources, planning documents or specimens, readings and reviews from journals, seminars, magazines, Architectural books, existing building document concerning internally displaced persons camp.

Limitation of Study

The research on this topic is limited by certain factors which are inevitable;

Financial and time constraint
Restrictions of facilities due to security reasons
Limited standard case studies: It was difficult to locate a standard IDP camp here in eastern Nigeria which resulted in me going as far as Abuja and even then the structures in the IDP camps are mere tents and has no architectural design to back them up.

Chapter Five

Conclusion and Recommendations

The crisis of internally displaced persons is a big challenge in Nigeria’s effort at enhancing human security in the region. It is evident that the crisis of internally displaced persons threatens every sphere of human security and if security is not assured, myriad of challenges which affects the people will arise. The lack of basic needs among these groups makes them become vulnerable to any form of radicalization. It is therefore the duty of the government to make these groups feel more secured to enhance human security in the region. Hence for the Nigerian state to fully attain high level of human security in the region, the government must take into recognition the internally displaced persons as they have a great role to play in the development of the region and the nation at large. There is an emerging understanding that states will not be secured and cannot be secured until the people feel secured as well.

This study therefore argues that in as much as it is important to secure the territorial sovereignity of the state and to dissolve any form of internal aggressions within the country, other sectors of the economy are also important in securing the existence of the people in the country hence the need to increase budget allocation to the educational sector, the health sector, agricultural sector, infrastructural sector, transportation and housing sectors. With the increment of the budget allocation towards these sectors, these would enable easy access and affordability of services by the citizens. As well, the government is able to lessen insecurities amongst her people and the people will feel more secured too. By this way, the government would also be rendering rehabilitation to the internally displaced persons in the country because there are sufficient resources to cater for and integrate these persons back into the society.

In addition to this, the issue of internally displaced persons should be included at the local government level. By this, the government should establish offices for internally displaced persons at the local government level with representatives of internally displaced persons occupying positions in these offices. The local government is the third tier of government which is the closest arm of the government to the people. This way, the government will find it very easy to access the displaced persons and cater for them. It would be much more difficult for the government to cater for these people especially at the federal level and sometimes the state level unlike the local government. Moreover, these displaced persons would find it easy to respond to the government through the local government owing to the fact that this arm of government is the government that the people know very well because of their grass root involvements in the development and rendering services to their communities.