Trials and troubles of life in Adamawa State, Nigeria – Part One

People displaced by conflict, particularly women, girls and children, experience significant obstacles in accessing sufficient water and sanitary facilities. Long travel distances for water collection expose them to safety risks like harassment and snake bites, while inadequate infrastructure exacerbates water shortages and contamination. When these water sources are disrupted there is loss of livelihoods, and tensions with host communities occasionally turn violent. These realities are being experienced in Nigeria’s Adamawa State, where more than 23,000 internally displaced persons (IDPs) have taken up residence in 12 local government areas due to the ​activities of non-state armed groups and communal clashes.​ 

In Adamawa State, conflict has drastically changed traditional gender roles inside IDP households. Before displacement, gender roles in the rural, mostly Muslim parts of Northeast Nigeria were historically inflexible. Women’s roles were mostly focused on reproductive duties, such as cooking for the family and taking care of other household chores. Certain women adhered to strict rules of modesty and spent practically all of their time indoors, either in walled family compounds or conservative settlements. Male headed families had the exclusive responsibility for providing the financial necessities of the family, leaving women completely dependent on their male relatives/partners for survival. Due to disruptions in conventional community structures (e.g., women assuming the household provider role), gender roles are no longer restricted. Both men and women struggle to adjust to the shift in roles.