An assessment The Economic Implication of ‘Boko Haram’ Insurgency in Nigeria

ABSTRACT

The  continued bombings,  killings, kidnappings  and  the  destruction of  property by  Boko  Haram have  become of great concern to the Nigerian government and the international community. The activities of Boko Haram have effects on the economy  and the  people.  This  paper  examines  the implications  of the  operations  of    the  Boko  Haram insurgency  in  the northeast  of    Nigeria. Findings  from the  study indicates  that  the atrocities  of Boko  Haram  have severe  implications  on  the economy  and  social  lives  of  the  people  of  the  northeast  where  the  activities  of  the  sect  is  concentrated.  The  paper recommends for the insurgency  to  come to an end, the  government  needs to provide  employment  to  the  teeming youths, dialogue with the  sect if the need arises  and equip the military with sophisticated gadgets in order to confront Boko Haram foot soldier.

 1 INTRODUCTION

Democratic government was installed in Nigeria in 1999 after more than 16 years of military dictatorship.  The aspiration of the  populace  was  that with  the coming  of civilian  government the  dividends of  democracy will  spread  to all  nooks and crannies of Nigeria. However, their hopes have been dashed by the recent events in  Nigeria. Fifteen years after  civilian rule, the country’s security situation is pathetic that nobody in the country is safe from the attacks of terrorists, kidnappers, armed gangs  and  militants.  Electoral  and  communal  violence  has  also compounded  the security  situation  that  has made  Nigeria unsafe  for  residence.  The  activities of  the dreaded  Islamic terrorist  group  Boko  Haram  have  been a  great concern  to the Nigerian government  and the  international community,  as in  up  to date,  Boko  Haram has  killed  more than  10,000 citizens despite the security measure taken by the federal government of Nigeria to checkmate the heinous crime of the sect against humanity. It  was  in  the light  of  the  failure of the  government counter  terrorism  drive that  made  youths  in the  North-  East part  of  the  country  to  form  a  youth  anti-terrorism  movement  called  “Civilian  JTF”  to  complement  the  effort  of  the government counter terrorism strategy. According to  Alozieuwa  (2012)   as cited  by  Anyadike  (2013)  “the  challenge posed  by Boko  Haram  in Nigeria  is  not only about the viciousness of  either  its terror campaigns or the sect’s avowed mission to impose Islamic law on the country, but about the confusion regarding the exact cause(s) of the violence”. A lot of factors have been attributed to the cause of Boko Haram  insurgency  in  Nigeria  such  as socioeconomic,  political and  religious  factors.  However,  Awojobi  (2014) and  Onuoha (2014) posit that the high-rate of poverty in Nigeria has  made  the  youths  enlisted  in  the  ranks  of  Boko Haram foot soldiers which has elongate the conflict  since  2009.  Most  of  the  activities of the sect are concentrated  in  the  North-East of Nigeria. Despite the state of emergency that was declared by the Federal government, the killings, bombings and kidnappings of Boko Haram continue unabated.  The activities of Boko Haram  sect have  led to economic,  social  and  psychological implications in the North-East Nigeria where the sect has a strong presence. The purpose of this study is to unravel the implications of Boko Haram insurgency in the North-East Nigeria.