Internal Displacement in Urban and Rural Areas

In 2014, 54 per cent of the world’s population lived in urban areas, with urban populations projected to increase to 66 per cent by 2050. As the world is rapidly urbanizing, so too is displacement. Specifically, internal displacement is becoming an urban phenomenon, especially as conflict and wars increasingly occur in cities. This report aims to discuss the analysis of the rural-urban dimension, specifically on access to services, using Nigeria and Ethiopia as case studies. Current discourse on displacement focuses only on the urban. It lacks a rural-urban dimension that allows for a more comparative understanding of the needs and vulnerabilities for and between each context. This is crucial as intervention and responses in urban settings is a new challenge for humanitarian agencies. This is largely due to the complexities and diversities of the urban landscape and lack of available and accurate data on urban internal displacement. As crises increasingly occur in urban areas, humanitarian actors will have to adapt their approaches to address the complex and dynamic urban environments. An understanding between displacement in rural versus urban areas can help to better inform humanitarian responses.