According to the International Organization for Migration (IOM), forced migration includes movements driven by conflict, persecution, disasters, environmental degradation, and other circumstances that compel individuals or groups to leave their habitual residence.9 Unlike voluntary migration, forced migration reflects failures in protection systems and governance structures that prevent individuals from exercising meaningful agency over mobility decisions. Within international refugee law, the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees defines a refugee as a person who, owing to a well-founded fear of persecution based on race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group, or political opinion, is outside their country of nationality and unable or unwilling to avail themselves of its protection.10 Recognizing the distinctive displacement dynamics within Africa, the 1969 OAU Convention Governing the Specific Aspects of Refugee Problems in Africa expands this definition to include individuals compelled to flee events seriously disturbing public order, including civil wars, insurgencies, and generalized violence.11 This broader formulation reflects the complex political and socio-economic realities shaping mobility patterns across the continent. Internally displaced persons (IDPs) constitute another key category within the forced migration framework. IDPs are defined as individuals or groups forced or obliged to flee their homes for reasons similar to those affecting refugees but who remain within the internationally recognized borders of their state.12 Despite not crossing an international border, IDPs frequently experience comparable vulnerabilities, including loss of livelihoods, limited access to public services, and exposure to violence. The UN Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement provide normative guidance concerning protection standards and state responsibilities toward IDPs, emphasizing prevention of arbitrary displacement and provision of humanitarian assistance. Mixed migration movements further complicate governance responses to forced mobility. Mixed flows typically involve individuals travelling together through irregular routes for diverse reasons, including persecution, economic hardship, trafficking risks, and environmental pressures.13 The convergence of humanitarian and economic drivers creates classification challenges for policymakers, as legal categories do not always reflect the lived realities of migrants whose motivations are multidimensional. 9 International Organization for Migration (IOM), Key Migration Terms (Geneva: IOM, 2019), https://www.iom.int/key-migration-terms (defining "forced migration" as encompassing movements driven by persecution, conflict, disasters and other compelling circumstances). 10 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees (n 1), art 1A(2). See also UNHCR, Handbook and Guidelines on Procedures and Criteria for Determining Refugee Status under the 1951 Convention and the 1967 Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees, HCR/1P/4/ENG/REV.4 (Geneva: UNHCR, 2019). 11 OAU Convention (n 2), art 1(2); Platform on Disaster Displacement (n 2). 12 UN Commission on Human Rights, Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement (n 1), Principle 2. 13 IOM, World Migration Report 2022 (Geneva: IOM, 2022) 21–22, https://worldmigrationreport.iom.int/wmr2022-interactive/ (discussing mixed migration flows and the convergence of humanitarian and economic drivers).