An asylum-seeker is someone whose request for sanctuary is yet to be processed.
National asylum systems determine who qualifies for international protection. Where there is no functioning asylum system, UNHCR helps with refugee status determination. However, during mass movements of refugees, usually as a result of conflict or violence, it is not always possible or necessary to conduct individual asylum procedures and interview every asylum-seeker. These groups are recognized as refugees without individual procedure and often called ‘prima facie’ refugees.
Everyone has the right to seek asylum from persecution or violence, and we at UNHCR, as part of our global mandate, promote the respect for this right. In addition, we do our best to protect those who need international.
Since September 2017, UNHCR in Nigeria has been responding to the influx of Cameroonian asylum-seekers particularly in Cross River, Benue and Taraba States, by registering and assisting them together with the authorities.