In partnership with the National Institute of Statistics - INS, the United Nations Migration Agency (International Organisation for Migration - IOM) conducted a pilot survey to assess the multi-sectoral needs of internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the Centre region of Cameroon. The aim of this data collection was to provide government actors and the humanitarian community with precise information on the cross-sectoral needs of displaced populations in this region. The aim was to guide policy decisions and optimise the humanitarian response by providing a comprehensive overview of the difficulties faced by IDPs in the central area.

As part of this pilot study, the stratified one-stage random sampling method was implemented in the Centre. Given the limited resources available, a random selection of 299 enumeration areas was made. The survey included 85,348 households, and it is estimated that approximately 1,861 of these households were IDP households, according to the Cameroon Household Survey (ECAM 5) conducted between 2021 and 2022.

The main results of the pilot survey from the Rapport-devaluation-des-besoins-multisectoriels-1-octobre-novembre-2023, indicate that the Centre region is home to around 56,050 IDPs, 54% of whom are women (30,299) and 46% men (25,751). Children and young people make up a large proportion of this displaced population, with 13,973 IDPs aged between 5 and 14 and 14,882 aged between 15 and 24. The majority of IDPs come from the Northwest (74.9%), Southwest (12.3%) and Far-North (5%) regions.

In terms of the priority needs of IDPs, the top three are: access to income-generating activities (60%), access to food (16%) and access to education for children (10%).

The survey was conducted as part of the "Supporting internally displaced persons and vulnerable mobile populations in Cameroon's Centre Regions through assessments and access to legal identity solutions" project launched in September 2022 and funded by the French Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs. Its aim is to meet the needs of internally displaced people and vulnerable mobile populations in the Centre and East regions of Cameroon, by providing support for the issuing of identification documents, as well as assessments of needs and mobility dynamics. The aim is to set up a coordination process with government players to support case management with a view to providing birth certificates and identity cards to beneficiaries, and to build the capacity of key players.

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For further information, please contact:

• Tafsirou BOCOUM, IOM Cameroon, Tel: +237 697654332 e-mail: tbocoum@iom.int 
• Pascale ESSAMA, IOM Cameroon, Tel: +237 657103074 e-mail: pessama@iom.int