“Do It Yourself!” Pedagogical Performances, Technical Expertise, and Crimmigration Control in the IOM’s Capacity-Building Practices in Nigeria

This article analyses the International Organization for Migration’s (IOM) implementation of the Migration Information and Data Analysis System (MIDAS) in Nigeria. Drawing on the theoretical frameworks of performativity and pragmatism, I conceptualise MIDAS as an attempt to resolve perceived social issues relating to the postcolonial ordering of global migration using biometric data collection tools. The deployment of the system is characterised by two ways of neutralising potential criticisms relating to the IOM’s post-imperial nature: pedagogical performances that represent the organisation as a ‘teacher’ of migration management, and claims of technological neutrality based on international technical standards and ‘best practices’. However, these technical interventions are not neutral; they have resulted in the expansion of crimmigration control practices in Nigeria, with a focus on security, risk, and crime control. The expansion of MIDAS has been accompanied by an increased focus on shared operating procedures between the Nigerian Immigration Service and federal agencies focused on law enforcement and transnational crime.