In June 2022, the Adamawa state Emergency Management Agency (ADSEMA) reported the arrival of 1,546 asylum seekers who fled persistent attacks by Non-State Armed Group (NSAG) in Mutas, Wupai, Ndrok, KulKubai and Dulum villages of Cameroon. The number of new arrivals keeps increasing as the attacks continue unabated. As of mid-December 2022, over 10,272 asylum seekers had fled their villages to seek refuge in Madagali, Michika, Maiha and Mubi LGAs of Adamawa state. Till date, less than 30% of the population has been supported with health services, Core Relief Items (CRIs), WASH kits, advocacy and sensitization provided by Adamawa State Health Ministry, UNHCR, WFP/GZDI, DRC, INTERSOS and Caritas, respectively. This necessitated the call for two separate meetings (with government and humanitarian actors) by UNHCR to discuss the possibility of conducting a Rapid Multisector Initial Rapid Needs Assessment (MiRA) within the host LGAs, with a view to having a clear understanding of the situation for informed response. The first meeting with ADSEMA and NCFRMI, and the second one with OCHA, IOM and other Sector Leads were aimed at designing a roadmap for the exercise.
The Assessment was conducted on 15 and 16 December 2022 in all the locations, except Maiha. The Protection, Shelter, Food Security and Livelihood, Nutrition, Education, Health, and WASH sectors were all represented during the exercise. Key Informant Interview (KII), Observation, and Focus Group Discussions (FGDs) were the data collection methods adopted for the exercise. Non-probability sampling (Stratified convenient sampling) technique was used in selecting the sample. A sample frame of 170 participants was selected from children, adolescents, adults, elderly, People with Disability and authorities, to ensure representation of different segments of the population. Considering the qualitative nature of the data collected, thematic analysis technique was largely used to analyze the assessment data, and it was triangulated with secondary information and observations available in the field.
The assessment report indicates that new arrivals are received daily as NSAG sustains its onslaught on other communities. Asked about their intentions to return to their country of origin, 95% of women and 45% men informed they will never go back, while 5% of women and 55 % informed they would go back only when normalcy resumes in the country of origin. It was gathered that Adamawa State hosts 3,137 Cameroonians in Madagali, 3,433 in Michika and 3,702 in Mubi.
Protection concerns like extortion by authorities, discrimination, domestic violence, denial of resources and lack of access to basic services were some of the information elicited from the affected population.

80% of adolescent girls and 60% of women identified sexual violence and domestic violence as the most significant safety and security concern. 33% of the respondents lamented that their children were either killed, abducted, or missing because of the NSAG attacks. 95% of the refugee children in Madagali, Michika and Mubi do not attend school instead, they engage in menial jobs with their parents or caregivers daily to buy staple food and non-food items for household use. Access to health services was an illusion to a large chunk of the population; only around 22% could afford it. Food security was found to be a dilemma as the adult males disclosed that “feeding is an excessively big challenge to us, most times we had to forfeit our meals for our young ones.” Early arrivals (30%) received food/livelihood assistance from WFP/GZDI for 3 months.
On livelihood, 95% of the participants stated that their main occupation was farming back home, and they used to cultivate beans, sorghum, rice, maize, and groundnuts. Few refugees that were able to farm in the last season in Michika and Madagali complained that there were restrictions on cultivating tall crops for security reason.
Shelter was one of the major challenges faced by the refugees. In Madagali for instance, 85% reported they lived in dilapidated government buildings and abandoned uncompleted shelters. In Michika, 55% live in rented apartments, 30% in market stalls and 15% with relatives. In Mubi, 50% stay with relatives in overcrowded apartments, 20% in rented apartments and 25% in public places. Overall, the affected population is vulnerable and in dire need of assistance in the form of Protection, Shelter, Food Security and Livelihood, Nutrition, Education, Health, and WASH. UNHCR may have to contemplate setting up a collection center, especially in Madagali if the security situation warrants that, considering that Madagali is a garrison town that is strictly under Military control.