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Cameroon has launched a new phase of voluntary repatriations affecting 3,122 Nigerian refugees at Minawao camp.
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The camp currently hosts about 75,000 Nigerian refugees, making it the largest in the country.
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All returns follow a tripartite agreement between Cameroon, Nigeria and the UN refugee agency, excluding forced repatriation.
Cameroon has continued voluntary repatriations of Nigerian refugees from Minawao camp in the Far North region, as authorities seek to gradually reduce pressure on the country’s largest refugee site.
On January 27, 2026, 297 Nigerian nationals left Minawao during an official ceremony overseen by the Far North regional governor, a representative of Nigeria’s Borno State government and an official from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.
Officials described the departure as the first repatriation operation of the year and part of a broader phase of voluntary returns. The program covers 577 households, representing about 3,122 people scheduled for repatriation. Authorities have organized the process in successive waves, relying on voluntary consent and joint logistical coordination with international partners.
Far North Governor Midjiyawa Bakary said Minawao camp currently shelters about 75,000 Nigerian refugees. Authorities opened the camp in 2013 to accommodate Nigerians fleeing Boko Haram violence, which was then intensifying in northeastern Nigeria. Bakary said Cameroon had also allocated farmland to refugees to support agricultural activity.
Demographic pressure at the site has persisted for more than a decade. United Nations data show the camp’s population rose from 6,000 to 30,000 refugees in less than one year. Designed to host 20,000 people, Minawao already housed more than 50,000 Nigerian refugees by the end of 2015.
The sustained influx has fueled tensions with host communities, particularly over access to land and the distribution of humanitarian aid.
Authorities have emphasized the legal limits governing refugee returns. Under a tripartite agreement between Cameroon, Nigeria and the UNHCR, as well as international conventions, forced repatriations are prohibited and only voluntary returns are permitted. Officials have organized similar operations not only for Nigerian refugees in the Far North but also for Central African refugees living in Cameroon’s eastern region.
This article was initially published in French by Ludovic Amara
Adapted in English by Ange J.A de BERRY QUENUM