The BHA COVID-19 Situational Analysis project, implemented by IMMAP and DFS in six countries (DRC, Burkina Faso, Nigeria, Bangladesh, Syria, and Colombia), has been analyzing the main concerns and unmet needs that have emerged across humanitarian sectors due to the COVID-19 pandemic since the summer of 2020. After almost a decade of conflict, economic challenges over the past years, and high levels of vulnerability, untangling the specific effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on humanitarian needs from other factors at play in Nigeria has been challenging.
Methodology
While COVID-19 has disrupted the livelihood sector, there was limited information measuring the impact of the easing of restrictions in the Northeast on businesses and job opportunities (both formal and informal). The insecurity caused by Boko Haram’s attacks and military operations, continues to significantly disrupt livelihoods, by limiting access to farmlands to income and food sources and causing population movement. Understanding the impact of COVID-19 on the livelihood sector, including business closures and lost livelihood opportunities, became a priority for iMMAP and the Early Recovery and Livelihood sector.
This survey was designed in two approaches i.e. First, all internet users, especially smartphone users, in Nigeria, aged 18 and above had a probability of landing on a general survey using PREMISE web-based application that required downloading to participate in the survey. Second, a targeted face-to-face individual interview survey with enumerators that were selected, trained on survey tools, and posted in the selected towns of BAY states and carried out the survey interviewing 11 different business operators in the informal sector. The survey questions were designed based on the information gaps identified by humanitarian actors, as part of iMMAP’s Situation Analysis project. The project supported the humanitarian response by providing sectoral and contextual analyses based on secondary data review and primary data collection, where additional information was most needed by responders. This survey was thus carried out between July to August 2021.
Sample Design and Size
iMMAP, in collaboration with the Early Recovery & Livelihood sector, and with support from Premise, employed purposive sampling to select towns in BAY state that were deemed accessible. About 3 towns from each state were selected, namely Maiduguri, Konduga, and Mafa in Borno State, Mubi, Numan and Yola towns in Adamawa State, and Damaturu, Geidam and Poti skum towns in Yobe State. A team of 16 enumerators from these towns or within their vicinity were deployed, after receiving one full day training on the survey data collection tool and sampling techniques to apply to survey participants. Specific efforts were made to advertise and vet enumerators to ensure high quality recruitment.
iMMAP country team supported Premise in onboarding enumerators to ensure that the survey benefitted from sufficient enumerators per state (since inter-state travel was prohibited due to security concerns in Northeast Nigeria). As iMMAP-selected enumerators used the iMMAP partner code, Premise was able to easily identify them on the platform as designated enumerators. All enumerators were required to attend a digital training provided by iMMAP on the survey instrument as well as an online training on navigating the app given by our community coordinator before the survey exercise was launched.
The overall sample size for both surveys was 1,163 participants including 564 participants for faceto-face interviews, including 195 participants in Borno and Yobe States, and 174 in Adamawa. Regarding the general survey, from the total 598 participants, Borno State registered 253 participants, while 201 participants were recorded in Adamawa, 136 in Yobe, 2 in Bauchi , 3 in FCT, 2 in Gombe and 1 in Nasarawa.
