Directory of Research and Expertise

---

Research Summary and Profile

Research interests:

Globalization & Development, Human rights, International Relations, Politics

Regions:

Africa, Europe

Summary of research interests and expertise:

Dr Tosin Durodola is a Visiting Research Fellow at the Refugee Law Initiative (RLI), School of Advanced Study, University of London.

He completed his PhD in African Studies from the University of Edinburgh, where his thesis focused on forced migration, peace and humanitarianism. He holds an MSc in African Studies (Diaspora and Transnational Studies) from the University of Ibadan, Nigeria, and BA (Hons) in History and International Studies at Bowen University, Nigeria.

His research focuses on displacement, peace, and human security. It examines what happens when systems of protection end and how their aftermath continues to shape the lives of displaced people, their descendants, institutions and societies over time. It also interrogates how conflict, displacement, humanitarian intervention and institutional change shape human security across time. Using displacement as an empirical lens, he investigates the long-term consequences of the end/absence of formal/state protection and governance, with a particular focus on the endings and afterlives of protection, refugeehood, durable solutions, citizenship, peacebuilding and emerging technologies.

He has published in flagship journals including Journal of Refugee Studies, Ethnic and Migration Studies, Refugee Survey Quarterly, and Ethnic and Racial Studies. He combines ethnography, qualitative and interdisciplinary research with engagement in policy and practice. Alongside his academic work, he collaborates with governments, international organisations, humanitarian agencies and research institutions to produce evidence that informs policy, strengthens practice and contributes to public debate.

Tosin is a Postdoctoral Research Associate at the African Leadership Centre, King’s College London. He previously taught courses on displacement, conflict, African history, politics, and development at the School of Social and Political Science, University of Edinburgh. He also worked at the Migration Policy Institute (MPI), where he contributed to research on migration and integration policy. Earlier in his career, he served as the pioneer Research Lead at the pan-African civic-tech organisation, Reformers’ Initiative for Development in Africa, focused on peace and digital governance. He also held a public sector role at the subnational level in Nigeria.

He is an Associate Editor at Social Dynamics (Taylor & Francis) and co-convenor of the RLI Working Group on “Understanding Solutions.” His teaching reflects his expertise in qualitative and ethnographic research methods and in displacement, peace, human security, and development.

 

Publication Details

Publications available on SAS-space:

Date	Details
Dec-2023	Where is Home without Legal Status? Understanding the Choice to Stay Among Post-Cessation Liberians in Nigeria PeerReviewed This article examines the experiences of “residual” Liberian refugees in Nigeria, individuals who remained in their country of asylum after the UNHCR terminated their refugee status. This study explores how the diverse interpretations of home and flight contribute to their decision to “stay” rather than opt for voluntary repatriation. In the context of transnationalism, the concept of simultaneity, where individuals feel a sense of belonging in both their home country and their host nation, underscores the need to consider the dynamics of movement and attachment in both places, and how these connections evolve over time. However, the idealisation of home as an unchanging and secure haven can result in flawed policy decisions that overlook the fact that many refugees have been displaced precisely because their homeland is no longer safe. The findings shed light on the aftermath of cessation, which might place “residual refugees” in a precarious position where they must navigate the intricate interplay between agency and constraint without state protection. This article offers a broader perspective on their ability to manoeuvre within these confines, balancing between two aspects: legal status and social leverage as responses to their precarious legal situation and transitional efforts to establish new homes.
Jul-2025	When does a refugee stop being a ‘refugee’? The social construction of refugeehood after cessation PeerReviewed Does the loss of refugee status bring refugeehood to an end, or does it reshape how it is lived, perceived, and governed in new ways? Drawing on ethnographic fieldwork and interviews with postcessation Liberians in the defunct Oru Camp in Nigeria, this paper explores how the refugee label persists as a socio-political construct beyond legal designation. It examines three interrelated dimensions: the institutional and social factors that shape continued identification with or rejection of the label; the everyday strategies used to reframe or resist it; and the host’s role in sustaining exclusionary perceptions. The study reconceptualizes refugeehood as an evolving process rather than a fixed legal condition and shows how the refugee label remains embedded in interactions, resource access, and identity, even in the aftermath of refugee status cessation.
Mar-2026	Waithood and creativity in the absence of resettlement: evidence from “residual” Liberian refugees in Nigeria PeerReviewed Voluntary repatriation is often promoted as the preferred durable solution by the UNHCR and host countries, but many refugees prioritise resettlement – a limited and inaccessible option for most. Prima facie refugees, recognised collectively, face additional challenges, including cessation under Article 1(C), which often occurs before their resettlement aspirations are realised. This paper examines the experiences of “residual” Liberian refugees in Nigeria’s defunct Oru refugee camp, focusing on those whose resettlement applications were unsuccessful after the cessation of their prima facie status. Through ethnographic research, this study interrogates two questions: How does the hope of resettlement shape their aspirations and “waithood” after cessation? And how do they resist the precarity reinforced by unsuccessful resettlement outcomes? Findings reveal that, despite the improbability of resettlement under formal institutions, these individuals sustain hopes while transforming their liminal status into a platform for resistance, appropriating resources and asserting rights within the host community.
Apr-2026	Return to what? Reimagining home and belonging after conflict and refugee status cessation among Liberians in Nigeria PeerReviewed This study examines how displaced persons conceptualise home and evaluate the possibility of return after the cessation of refugee status and the narrowing of mobility options. Drawing on fieldwork with first-generation Liberians in the defunct Oru Refugee Camp in south-west Nigeria, it analyses how shared histories of violence, prolonged exile, and the withdrawal of legal protection shape return decisions long after the formal end of conflict. Although the international refugee system promotes repatriation as the preferred durable solution, Liberia is no longer considered by many interlocutors as a viable future homeland following the termination of their refugee protection. Home is sustained through everyday social life in exile, while return is assessed through comparative and forward-looking judgements about safety, trust, and the durability of peace within a defunct camp environment characterised by long-term social continuity alongside legal and political precarity. This paper demonstrates that the loss of refugee status, when combined with decades of camp-based exile, recasts return from a presumed resolution into a strategic and frequently rejected outcome, providing a lens for understanding mobility decisions in other post-cessation settings where protection ends without secure pathways to belonging.

Publications available on SAS-space

Professional Affiliations

Professional affiliations:

Name	Activity
Refugee Law Initiative (RLI) Working Group on Understanding Solutions	Co-convenor
Border Criminologies Network, University of Oxford	Member
Social Dynamics	Associate Editor

Relevant Events

Knowledge transfer activities:

Details
African Liberty Webinar on Reimagining Governance in Africa: Pathway to Political Stability Invited Speaker, Reimagining Governance in Africa: Pathway to Political Stability, organised by African Liberty, 30 January.
Migration and Mobilities Research Network (MMRN) Annual Conference Presentation at the Migration and Mobilities Research Network (MMRN) Annual Conference titled “Migration, Mobilities, and Politics of Hostility and Hospitality” Edinburgh Napier University, 23 June
African Diaspora Resource and Research Centre (ADRRC) Seminar Series Invited Speaker, “Time and Power: Governing Late Arrivals Through Hospitality and Containment After Refugee Protection Ends,” African Diaspora Resource and Research Centre (ADRRC) Seminar Series, Tetfund Centre of Excellence for Diaspora Studies, University of Ibadan, Nigeria, 20 August.
PGR Symposium & Exhibition Conference Presentation at the PGR Symposium & Exhibition Conference titled “Everyday Experiences of Conflict the Daily Life, Legacies & Textures of War”, St John’s College, University of Oxford, 6 November
Refugee Law Initiative (RLI) 15th Anniversary Conference Presentation at the Refugee Law Initiative (RLI) 15th Anniversary Conference titled “Refugee Law and Forced Migration Studies: Debates, Interactions and Futures”, University of London, 2-4 June
Workshop “Ancestral Citizenship in Motion: Migration and the Politics of Extraterritorial Belonging” Paper Presentation at the Workshop ‘Ancestral Citizenship in Motion: Migration and the Politics of Extraterritorial Belonging,’ International Institute of Social Studies, Erasmus Rotterdam University, Hague, 13 October.
Panel on "Interrogating the Politics of Migration Labels" Convenor, Panel on "Interrogating the Politics of Migration Labels," at the Refugee Law Initiative (RLI) Annual Conference, University of London, 4 June. Reviewed and selected contributors’ abstracts
Refugee Law Initiative (RLI) Workshop ‘Conceptualising Displacement, Protection and Solutions’ Paper Presentation at the Workshop ‘Conceptualising Displacement, Protection and Solutions’, Refugee Law Initiative, University of London, 25 October
20th IMISCOE Annual Conference Presentation at the 20th IMISCOE Annual Conference titled “Migration and Inequalities: In Search of Answers and Solutions”, Centre of Migration Research, University of Warsaw, 3-6 July.
Roundtable on “Prospects and Forecasts for Africa” Speaker, Roundtable on “Prospects and Forecasts for Africa”, Royal African Society and University of Edinburgh, 25 January
Nigeria's Presidential Election Analysis Programme Analyst, Nigeria's Presidential Election Analysis Programme, organised by Dataphyte, 25-26 February
Donor Roundtable on Development Approaches to Refugees and Host Communities in Secondary Cities MPI Intern, SDC - MPI Donor Roundtable on Development Approaches to Refugees and Host Communities in Secondary Cities (ahead of the 2023 Global Refugee Forum)
UNHCR - ICVA Online Consultations with NGOs on Leveraging COP28 and the Global Refugee Forum (GRF) for Joint Policy Engagement on Climate and Displacement MPI Delegate, UNHCR - ICVA Online Consultations with NGOs on Leveraging COP28 and the Global Refugee Forum (GRF) for Joint Policy Engagement on Climate and Displacement
World Bank - UNHCR - UK Aid Discussions on Policies to Create Jobs and Community: Learning from the Evidence on Forced Displacement MPI Delegate, World Bank - UNHCR - UK Aid Discussions on Policies to Create Jobs and Community: Learning from the Evidence on Forced Displacement (ahead of the Global Refugee Forum)
4th Conference of German Network for Forced Migration Studies Paper Presentation at the 4th Conference of German Network for Forced Migration Studies, TU Chemnitz, 28-30 September.
Swiss National Centre of Competence in Research (NCCR) and Neuchâtel Graduate Conference of Migration and Mobility Studies Presentation at the Swiss National Centre of Competence in Research (NCCR) and Neuchâtel Graduate Conference of Migration and Mobility Studies, University of Neuchâtel, Switzerland, 1-2 July.
11th Annual African, African American, and Diaspora Studies (AAAD) Interdisciplinary Conference Paper Presentation at the 11th Annual African, African American, and Diaspora Studies (AAAD) Interdisciplinary Conference, James Madison University, Harrisonburg, VA, 17-20th February.
20th Nordic Mi­gra­tion Research Conference & 17th Society for the Study of Ethnic Relations and International Migration (ETMU) Conference Presentation at the 20th Nordic Mi­gra­tion Research Conference & 17th Society for the Study of Ethnic Relations and International Migration (ETMU) Conference, University of Helsinki, Finland, 11-14 Jan.
Borders, Categories, and Mobilities Symposium Paper Presentation at the Borders, Categories, and Mobilities Symposium, La Trobe University Higher Degree Research (HDR) Migration Reading Group, Australia, 27 November.
Oxford Migration Studies Society Conference on “Reimagining Migrant Narratives” Presentation at the Oxford Migration Studies Society Conference on “Reimagining Migrant Narratives”, University of Oxford, United Kingdom, 14-15 May.

Consultancy & Media

Available for consultancy:

Yes

Media experience:

Yes

Back to top