SOCIO-ECONOMIC CHALLENGES AND RESILLIENCE OF DISPLACED WOMEN AND CHILDREN IN SHIRORO LGA, NIGER STATE

The socioeconomic effects of displacement on women and children in Shiroro Local Government Area (LGA), Niger State, Nigeria, are examined in this study. It looks at how banditry-induced forced migration has affected livelihoods, education, health, and safety, making women reliant on outside assistance and keeping kids out of school. The study also looks at the difficulties of living in Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camps, where displaced people are subjected to additional burdens like psychological trauma and gender-based violence due to inadequate utilities, poor housing, and a lack of privacy. The study generates information from impacted communities using a qualitative research methodology in order to document the lived experiences of women and children who have been displaced. It reveals how women use coping mechanisms like farm work, menial labour, and unofficial support systems to maintain their families through focus groups and interviews. However, the effectiveness of these survival tactics is limited by the lack of official community-based programs and insufficient government intervention. The study is based on the Social Exclusion Theory, which describes how displaced people become marginalised because their access to social services, education, and economic possibilities is limited. The way that displacement exacerbates inequality and upholds structural barriers that keep women and children trapped in a cycle of poverty and dependency is highlighted by this theoretical framework. By concentrating on a lesser-known area impacted by displacement brought on by banditry, this study adds to the body of literature by reorienting focus from security issues to socioeconomic disturbances. This study emphasises grassroots resilience and offers policy-oriented recommendations to improve IDP conditions and help displaced communities, in contrast to many other studies that focus on government interventions.