Migration Profile on Nigeria - IOM Publications - International ...

However, Table 7 indicates fluctuations in the number of resident
expatriates, that is, highly skilled professionals who are in the country for a set
period of time during 2005–2008. The number increased from 27,272 in 2005
to 48,143 in 2006; thereafter, there was a drop to 47,677 (2007) and further to
27,075 by August 2008 (NIS, 2009).
Table 7: Arrivals and departures in and from Nigeria, 2005–2008
2005 2006 2007 2008
Number of arrivals 1,044,361 2,472,945 – –
Number of departures 1,147,228 2,637,164 – –
Number of expatriates
resident in Nigeria
27,272 48,143 47,677
27,075 (as at
19/08/08)
Source: NIS, 2009.
c.1.2 Types of immigrants
Refugees/Asylum-seekers
The number of refugees increased from 7,106 in 2000 to 8,031 in 2005
(UNPD, 2007) and 10,124 in 2008 (NCFR, 2008). In 2000 and 2005, refugees
formed a very small and decreasing percentage of the stock of immigrants (0.9
and 0.8%, respectively). Table 19 and Figure 14 (see annex) show western Africa
as the main source region, with 7,086 refugees (71% of the total). Liberia was
the leading country in the region, with 5,303 refugees (75%) as of 2008.
A significant number of refugees were repatriated after the return to
peace and democracy in Liberia and Sierra Leone, among others, and the official
closure of the Oru Refugee Camp: 2,345 voluntarily repatriated, 34 third-country
resettlements and 10,401 returnees (NCFR, 2008). Furthermore, the remaining
refugees are offered the option of local integration in the country in a joint project
for the local integration of Liberian and Sierra Leonean refugees in Nigeria. The
collaborating bodies are the Governments of Nigeria, Liberia and Sierra Leone,
UNHCR, the European Union and ECOWAS.
The figures for new asylum applications are rather low in Nigeria, totalling
1,218 in 2008 (see Table 20 and Figure 15 in annex). Two thirds of asylum-seekers
(66%) were from the Great Lakes Region of Africa, with the Democratic Republic
of the Congo being the major source country in the region, with 88 per cent of
the total for the region (NCFR, 2008).
<strong>Migration</strong> in Nigeria: A Country <strong>Profile</strong> 2009
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