Assessing Environment and Sexual Behaviour of Internally Displaced Persons in Benue State, Nigeria

The world continues to witness an increasing number of internally displaced populations as a result of internal conflicts. Nigeria has been witnessing ethnic, religious, farmers- pastoralist conflicts, sustained terrorist and bandits’ attacks, and natural disasters. Benue state has suffered attacks by armed Fulani herders since the return to democracy in 1999. The conflict has led to the displacement of communities, households, families, individuals and entire villages. The displaced persons are settled in makeshift internally displacement camps that are congested and environmentally poor in Makurdi, the state capital and the affected local government areas. Studies are mostly skewed toward the social, economic and security well-being of displaced persons. This study assesses the environment and sexual behaviour of internally displaced persons in Benue State with a focus on teenagers between 10 and 19 years. The study adopted a cross-sectional survey design where quantitative and qualitative data were collected through questionnaires and key informants interview guides from respondents and some key informants who were selected using a multistage sampling technique. The data were analyzed using correlation statistics and content analysis to show the relationship between environment and sexual behaviour of the displaced persons, the extent to which displaced teenagers are involved in sexual activities, their contraceptive awareness and uptake, and the relationship between environment and risky sexual behaviour. The study concludes that the environment (especially IDP camps) plays a key role in shaping the sexual behaviour of displaced teenagers. Thus, the adoption of comprehensive sex education by government officials in the camp to ensure safe sex among the IDPs is recommended.