In January 2025, refugees queued in Touboro, in Cameroon’s Far North region, to receive government-issued biometric identity cards. UNHCR’s account follows Ali Bappaladane, a refugee-association leader who joined the line while helping coordinate distribution. More than 4,000 of a planned 10,000 cards had already been printed and stacked on tables, and some participants had travelled over 120 kilometres on difficult roads. A parallel distribution began in Yaoundé. For urban refugees, the document could support freedom of movement and access to banking, education and scholarships. This was not a ceremonial handout. People who had lived in Cameroon for years were waiting for formal recognition that could make ordinary transactions safer and possible. The queue concentrated several needs into one turn at a table: proof of identity, protection from harassment and a more usable place in public life.