Why International Child Protection Norms Fail: Administrative Classification and the Protection of Internally Displaced Children in Nigeria

Abstract

This study investigates why international and regional child protection policies have failed to protect Nigerian internally displaced children, despite a significant number of ratified international treaties and domestic obligations. It focuses specifically on the New Kuchingoro IDP settlement located within the Federal Capital Territory and examines how administrative categorisation affects the protection of rights. A qualitative case study methodology was used to collect data, including interviews with FEMA, NCFRMI, and camp leaders; focus groups with parents and adolescents; and non-participant observation of living conditions. Utilising path dependency theory, the research argues that Abuja's historical Master Plan, a broken resettlement promise, and a federal directive that redirected humanitarian efforts to the northeast have all contributed to New Kuchingoro being confined to its current state as an informal camp. The findings reveal that rights deprivation is maintained by five mechanisms: administrative invisibility due to the lack of formally built government-run camps; institutional fragmentation among agencies with overlapping but unclear roles; prolonged developmental harm from insufficient healthcare, housing, water, and secondary education; and governance exclusion, where children know their rights but lack ways to assert them. Based on these findings, the study recommends that the government of Nigeria provide formally built and recognised camps or supported integration; dedicate funds specifically to protect the welfare of IDP children; improve communication among governmental agencies responsible for providing services to IDPs; encourage foreign donors to expand their assistance to other parts of Nigeria outside of the northeast; and review FCT planning practices. This research adds to discussions on norm implementation and displacement governance by demonstrating that the failure of child protection is not merely a capacity issue but a problem of classification