We will stay-put or die remaining: why some communities choose active immobility in conflict zones in Nigeria

Abstract

The staying behaviour of communities in violent conflict zones remains underexplored in migration. This paper investigates why communities in Nigeria’s Middle Belt choose to stay put on their ancestral land, despite having the means to flee, recurring armed attacks, displacement risks, and the absence of state protection. Drawing on focus group discussions conducted in 2022 across Benue and Nasarawa States, and underpinned by the resilience–accessibility framework, the study applies a reflexive thematic analysis to examine how the material and symbolic dimensions of life influence active immobility in conflict-affected areas. The findings suggest that active immobility in the study locations is shaped by two interrelated dimensions of life: the material, attachment to land and its physical, social, and economic resources, and the symbolic, their desire to preserve their lifescape while on their ancestral land. The paper extends debates on (im)mobility beyond Eurocentric and climate-focused perspectives by foregrounding collective experiences of staying put in conflict-affected areas in the Global South.