By Ola Williams
Between 2016 and 2023, over 600,000 Nigerians applied for asylum in various countries, coinciding with the administration of former President Muhammadu Buhari.
Buhari, who served as President from 2015 to 2023, handed over power to President Bola Tinubu on May 29, 2023, following Tinubu’s electoral victory.
A report released on Wednesday, July 17, 2024, by Statisense, a data collection organization, revealed that 664,384 Nigerians sought asylum during Buhari’s eight-year tenure. The data shows that 355,792 people applied for asylum between 2016 and 2019, while 308,592 did so between 2020 and 2023.
The year-by-year breakdown is as follows:- -2016: 66,862
-2017: 91,924
-2018: 84,624
-2019: 112,382
-2020: 73,233
– 2021: 83,105
– 2022: 83,402
– 2023: 68,852
Statisense noted that between 2004 and 2015, only 204,791 Nigerians filed for asylum in other countries. In total, 869,175 Nigerians sought asylum from 2004 to 2023. The report, shared on Statisense’s X.com handle @StatiSense, cites data from the United Nations Refugee Agency.
Additionally, another report by Statisense revealed that the Republic of Niger hosted the most Nigerian refugees in 2023, with approximately 200,497 Nigerians.
Between 2015 and 2023, a total of 1,268,464 Nigerian refugees were recorded in Niger. The proximity of Niger to Nigeria’s northern region, which faces severe insecurity due to banditry, terrorism, and herdsmen-farmers conflicts, likely contributes to these numbers.
Furthermore, Nigerians topped the list of African countries seeking asylum in Canada in 2023, with about 10,111 asylum seekers. Kenya followed with 1,345 asylum seekers.
In addition, 1,345 Nigerians sought asylum in the United Kingdom, while 5,136 did so in the United States of America.
