Refugee Camp Management and Conflict Prevention in North East Nigeria

This study examines conflict prevention management practices within officially managed internally displaced persons camps and informal displacement settlements in the North East geopolitical zone of Nigeria, focusing on Borno and Yobe states. Camp management in post-conflict displacement settings involves complex challenges of governance, resource distribution, and social tension management that require professional conflict management competencies rarely integrated into standard humanitarian training. Using a professional practice research design, data were collected through structured interviews with 35 camp managers, UNHCR protection officers, NEMA officials, and civil society programme coordinators managing camps in Maiduguri, Damaturu, and Monguno. Review of OCHA situation reports and camp incident logs from 2022 to 2024 supplemented primary data. The theoretical framework draws from humanitarian governance theory and conflict-sensitive programming frameworks. Findings indicate that the most conflict-prone moments in IDP camp management involve food and non-food item distribution, camp registration updates, and the return and reintegration phases. Camps with dedicated community liaison structures and complaint management systems demonstrate markedly lower intra-camp conflict rates. Recommendations include establishing mandatory conflict management training for all camp managers and humanitarian staff in North East Nigeria, developing standardised conflict-sensitive programming protocols for IDP camp management, and creating formal mechanisms for camp residents to participate in camp governance decisions. Keywords: refugee camp management, conflict prevention, North East Nigeria, IDP camps, humanitarian.