Mind your language: communicating with

internally displaced people in northeast Nigeria

Ellie Kemp, TWB Head of Crisis Response

Photo: TWB/Paul Warambo

Gender, age, (dis)ability

Wealth & poverty

Language

Vulnerability

IDMC priority countries

Internally displaced people have a “right to

communicate in a language they

understand.” (Guiding Principle 22)

Photo: IOM

Photo: TWB/Eric De Luca

The need to consider language barriers is implied

in several other principles: the right to protection

and humanitarian assistance (GP 3), to voluntary

return or resettlement, and to participate in

planning those processes (GP 28).

Photo: TWB/Eric De Luca

“Ensure public access to information and

protect fundamental freedoms” (SDG target

16.10).

“Access to information is directly linked to the

enjoyment of basic rights and freedoms and

influences the achievement of all the Sustainable

Development Goals” – Audrey Azoulay, Director-

General of UNESCO

Photo: IOM

The case of northeast Nigeria

30+ languages and dialects

Low literacy levels

Focus on Hausa and Kanuri

38% of IDPs are not receiving information

in their mother tongue (IOM DTM)

Three main consequences

1. Needs analysis

2. Access to services

3. Conflict sensitivity

Needs analysis

Access to services

Access to services

“[…] perceptions of bias along ethno-

linguistic lines linked with elite capture,

diversion of aid, conflict between

farmers and pastoralists and tensions

between IDPs and host communities” –

Feed the Future Nigeria Livelihoods

Project

Conflict sensitivity

Building a solution

Capacity

Resources

Knowledge

Knowledge

Capacity

Photo: TWB/Eric De Luca

Capacity

Photo: TWB/Mia Marzotto

Resources

Closing the language gap

between policy & practice

Photo: IOM

ellie@translatorswithoutborders.org

#LanguageMatters

www.translatorswithoutborders.org

Photo: TWB/Paul Warambo