Tinubu Enacts Kalu’s Kampala Convention Bill to Shield Nigeria’s IDPs

By Ifeyinwa Ike

President Bola Tinubu has signed into law a landmark bill sponsored by Deputy Speake of the house, Hon. Benjamin Kalu, domesticating the African Union Kampala Convention for the Protection and Assistance of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in Nigeria.

The legislation, titled “Act to Give Effect to the Provisions of the African Union Convention for the Protection and Assistance of Internally Displaced Persons in Nigeria,” received presidential assent in February 2026 after passing both chambers of the National Assembly.

Kalu led the effort alongside six co-sponsors: Nigeria, which ratified the 2009 Kampala Convention alongside 32 other AU members, now has a legal framework to tackle root causes of displacement like Boko Haram insurgency, banditry, farmer-herder clashes, and natural disasters.

The law mandates prevention, protection of IDP rights, humanitarian aid, and durable solutions, addressing overcrowded camps, poverty, hunger, and insecurity affecting millions.

In a statement, Chief Press Secretary, ,Levinus Nwabughiogu, stated the
Objectives include institutional roles for government and non-state actors, gender-sensitive coordination, and international cooperation to combat displacement.

Kalu hailed Tinubu for giving a human face to IDP suffering, urging Nigerians and the global community to back implementation