Regional Security Meeting in Abuja and UNHCR-World Bank Lake Chad Basin Displacement Workshop
As a follow-up to the Paris Summit of 17 May 2014, the 2nd Regional Security Summit was held on 14 May 2016 in Abuja. The high-level conference was preceded by a meeting of experts which, among others, deliberated on security, challenges of displacement and developments around the Lake Chad Basin area. The Summit acknowledged the heavy toll Boko-Haram related violence brought on countries and communities involved. It calls on all parties involved in the Multi-National Joint Task Force to ensure that security operations are carried out in compliance with international standards. It also stressed the importance of supporting GBV survivors and renewed commitment to take immediate action to address the humanitarian crisis. Appreciating the burden Lake Chad Basin countries are facing in hosting refugees, the Summit concluded with a commitment to work together to ‘generate conditions of security and public services ‘to allow refuges to return home in safety and dignity in cooperation with relevant international aid agencies.
UNHCR-Nigeria participated in a regional workshop on forced displacement in the Lake Chad basin, co-organized by UNHCR and the World Bank. The workshop was held from 18 to 20 May 2016 in Dakar, Senegal. Representatives of government officials, UNHCR and World Bank from Cameroon, Nigeria, Niger and Chad participated in the meeting. Breakout groups discussed prioritization of regional and country specific needs and responses in the short and long-term, based on recommendations provided in the report.