Banditry in Sokoto

Nigeria grapples with curtailing the various violent conflicts across the nation. The North West region of the country is notorious for bandit activities, and one of the states in the region that is affected is the “Seat of the Caliphate”, Sokoto state. According to the Nextier Violent Conflict Database for 2023, Sokoto state has recorded incidents of banditry, gunmen attacks, extra-judicial killings and communal clashes. However, banditry remains the most predominant violent conflict in Sokoto State, with 11 incidents, 25 kidnap victims and 45 casualties(deaths and injuries) between 1^st August 2023 and 4^th December 2023.

The seemingly unending attacks by bandits in an incident on 3rd December 2023 led to the death of seven and the abduction of several others in the Goronyo and Wurno Local Government Area of Sokoto State. Another incident that occurred on 9th November 2023 in Rabbah Local Government Area culminated in the death of 11 people. A particular pattern recorded among a few of these bandit attacks has been the orchestration of attacks by groups with sophisticated weapons that kill and loot.

A newspaper report categorised some areas of the state as being under siege as residents of areas such as Sokoto East are at the mercy of bandits and other criminal groups. This fed into the humanitarian crisis in the region, in which reports reveal that over 450,000 people have been displaced by violent conflicts in Zamfara, Katsina and Sokoto states. This is further compounded by the absence of official displacement camps in the state and other states in the region.

Certain factors have contributed to the recurrence of banditry in the “seat of the caliphate”. Economic factors such as high levels of poverty and unemployment create an environment conducive to criminal activities. Bandits often exploit the economic vulnerabilities of individuals, especially unemployed young ones, to recruit them into illicit activities. Also, weak security infrastructure and inadequate law enforcement capabilities, surveillance, and intelligence gathering have hindered the curtailing of banditry in Sokoto State.

On assumption of office, Governor Ahmed Aliyu of Sokoto State adopted several strategies to arrest the state’s insecurity and constant bandit attacks. One was boosting logistic support of security vehicles to military and security outfits for surveillance operations. Efforts towards addressing insecurity in the state have also been seen through the government’s move towards setting up a panel on the establishment of community guards. This is to serve as a complement to the mainstream federal security agencies in the fight against insecurity. However, the insecurity, particularly banditry, goes beyond the Sokoto State boundaries, especially in the Northern region; hence, the collaboration in October 2023 by the National Boundary Commission with seven Northern State governments is vital to the overall efforts against insecurity. But, despite these efforts, arresting the state’s banditry concern cannot be said to have achieved the expected result.

Thus, the government has also made it clear that security challenges experienced in Local Government Areas such as Wurno, Binji, Goronyo, Rabah, Sokoto South and Tambuwal pose a major constraint to the development of the state, hence Involving local communities and traditional institutions in security initiatives and providing economic empowerment programs can help address the root causes of banditry by offering viable alternatives to criminal activities.

While there has been some effort to strengthen security through logistic support, there is a need to sustain efforts to strengthen the capacity of security forces through increased training, better equipment, and improved intelligence gathering to combat banditry effectively, especially around border communities. There is a need for state and federal institutions to work together to create employment opportunities and solve other socioeconomic issues that drive people to engage in violent conflict.