Abuja – Caritas Nigeria has called on the Federal Government to declare a state of emergency in northwestern Nigeria, where insecurity fuelled by armed banditry and jihadist terrorism has forced thousands of people to flee their homes.
The appeal was made by Jude Akwo, Head of Good Governance Program at Caritas Nigeria, during a one-day policy dialogue seminar held in Sokoto, the capital of the northwestern state of the same name.
According to Akwo, a formal declaration of a state of emergency would enable the launch of a coordinated humanitarian response similar to the one implemented in northeastern Nigeria, mobilising both federal authorities and international humanitarian agencies. In particular, it would allow the creation of properly managed camps for internally displaced persons in communities devastated by bandit attacks and jihadist violence.
Akwo stressed that most settlements for internally displaced persons in the region are currently informal and lack even basic infrastructure and protection, leaving displaced people, especially women and children, highly vulnerable to further abuse.
He also highlighted the crucial role played by women in supporting communities affected by violence. “We wanted to move beyond the narrative of female victimhood,” he said. “Our findings show that women have played significant roles in early warning and early response mechanisms. They have developed community-based strategies to respond to conflict and have cared for children and families whose relatives were kidnapped.”
“These women,” Akwo continued, “have built support networks that care for survivors. Through village savings and loan groups, they contribute resources to assist affected families and, in some cases, even raise money to pay ransoms.”
According to the International Organization for Migration , at the end of 2025, 2,333,190 internally displaced persons from 478,229 households were identified in northeastern Nigeria, where a humanitarian state of emergency has been declared.
IOM data also show that, as of October 2025, there were 1,378,124 internally displaced persons in northwestern Nigeria. The agency identifies the main causes of displacement as armed banditry and kidnappings , clashes between farmers and herders , intercommunal conflicts , climate-related disasters , and the jihadist insurgency .
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