“Sometimes it seems like the world wasn’t made for people like me,” Shiminenge said, his voice firm despite the weight of the words. In Gbajimba, north-central Nigeria, the 32-year-old lives daily life in a displaced people’s camp that offers little space, safety or accessibility for people living with disabilities.
Around them, tents are spread out on dry, uneven ground. The roads become muddy and difficult when it rains. Toilets and water points are further away than you can reach without help. Yet every morning, she overcomes the same obstacles, determined not to disappear into a place that was never designed for her.
Shiminenge is one of more than 480,000 people displaced by inter-communal conflict in Benue State.
He fled his village in Guma in 2018 and has since lived in a camp for internally displaced people in Gbajimba. Like many others, he left with little more than the hope of finding safety.
But his journey began long before the displacement.
Shiminenge (right) has received support from the IOM and other humanitarian agencies.
At just nine months old, his parents were told he would never be able to walk after a diagnosis that shaped the course of his life. Growing up with a mobility disability meant constant adjustments and an early understanding of what it means to move through the world without accessible support.
Today, camp life has added another layer of daily challenge: poor accommodation conditions, lack of accessible toilets and a landscape that is almost impossible to navigate.
On the eve of the International Day of Persons with Disabilities, celebrated annually on December 3, he said: “At the camp, every step out of my tent was a struggle.” It’s not just the physical obstacles; “It is the feeling of being invisible, of being forgotten in a place where survival is already very difficult.”
Barriers to services and dignity
The sense of invisibility that Shiminenge describes is shared by many people with disabilities in displacement settings. They are often among the most marginalized within internally displaced populations and face unique barriers to obtaining shelter, healthcare, sanitation, and essential services.
In these settings, inaccessible infrastructure and limited targeted support can increase risks of neglect, exclusion and abuse. As these barriers accumulate, they make travel even more difficult and put the rights and dignity of people with disabilities at greater risk.
Despite these limitations, Shiminenge refused to give up. Resourceful and determined, she began selling mosquito repellent in the camp, earning a small income while also helping to protect other camp residents from malaria.
His resilience soon turned into defense. He helped form a disability association in Gbajimba, which brought together 18 other people living with disabilities to push for mobility aids, fair access to resources and more inclusive facilities.
Camp improvement
In August 2024, a team from the International Organization for Migration (IOM) visited the camp to assess the living conditions of displaced people. After years of feeling invisible in a crowded place, the visit felt different. “For the first time here I felt like someone was listening to me,” he said.
In response to the association’s requests, IOM, with the support of the Benue State Emergency Management Agency, led a complete redesign of the camp to ensure that the specific needs of people living with disabilities were met with dignity and respect.
As part of this redesign, nearly 4,000 improved emergency shelters were built in Gbajimba, each built to withstand the region’s seasonal rains and provide safer living conditions for displaced families.
The redesign also introduced a dedicated section for people living with disabilities, offering disabled-accessible bathrooms, accessible water points and kitchens designed for ease of use.
Throughout the area, gently sloping ramps and community social spaces were added, allowing residents to move independently and participate more fully in daily camp life.
“These changes mean more than convenience; they give us a sense of dignity and belonging,” he said.
