Each grain they collect tells a story of desperation and the cruel intersection of climate and conflict. “When there is no food, this is all we can do,” says one of the women, her fingers coated in earth.

Their actions stem not from laziness but a will to survive. This has been the stark reality for over 15 years of conflict that has ravaged Northeast Nigeria and continues to displace about 2.2 million people. Thousands of families have been torn apart while millions have lost livelihoods due to prolonged violence. According to the latest Cadre Harmonisé report, the Borno, Adamawa, and Yobe (BAY) States account for 15% (3.7 million people) of Nigeria’s food-insecure population.

From the muddy paddies of Bade, resilience grows like rice in flooded fields, slowly but persistently. Despite walking different paths, Isiaku, Hassana, and countless others across Northeast Nigeria and the wider Lake Chad region, have been caught in the same devastating cycle of violence. And through it all, there remains a common thread, the dream of return. Not just to a place but to a sense of normalcy, to the dignity of self-reliance, and to the rhythm of life once known.