Demography and Social Stratification of Refugees at the Oru Refugee Camp, Ogun State, Nigeria

Abstract

Forced migration/refugee status is as old as man, ever increasing and literature is sparse when searching for references regarding demography among this very important population in Oru camp. This study set out to determine the demography and social stratification of refugees at Oru refugee camp, Nigeria. Subjects were adult (18-55yrs) males and females, 100 in two groups: local residents and refugees that just moved into camp within last 6months. A questionnaire was used to determine the demographic spread of inmates and their social standing prior to flight. The refugees’ population comprised of Liberians, Sierra Leoneans, Sudanese, Congolese, Nigeriens, Rwandans and Senegalese in order of frequency of occurrence. War and famine are significant reason for displacement. Efforts should be geared towards good governance in Africa since failed governments often degenerate to warring and at best unrests because war and unrests are the main reasons for flight in the studied refugee camp.

Keywords: Refugee, Migration, Internally Displaced Persons [IDPs], Demography.