Western diplomats fear the spread of extremist groups and persistent economic and social problems in Western Africa and the Sahel are nearing a tipping point that could have disastrous consequences for the region and beyond
Burkina Faso’s security is deteriorating, with Islamist extremists carrying out the bloodiest assaults on civilians and security forces in the country in years. People are protesting the inability of Burkinabe and foreign forces to put an end to the bloodshed, with others pushing for changes at the top
For years, at least 400 people in Burkina Faso, including some kids under the age of 16, have been awaiting trial on terrorism charges
Following a two-month closure due to insecurity, Nigerian authorities have reopened schools in northern Kaduna state. Armed kidnappings have become common in the region, and UNICEF estimates that one million Nigerian children are “fearful of returning to school.”
The technological era has changed the approach to public and private policing, as security officers are yet to adapt to the advantages of the services offered. Nonetheless, the innovation has led to structural reorganization, budget orientation in order to redefine traditional approaches to policing (Fyfe et al. 2013). Policing criminal acts are no longer limited to law enforcement agencies, as community or individuals now engage in the quest for evidence based, support with intelligence and reconfigured police structures in some countries (Den Boer, 2014). Police is gradually supplemented by a mosaic of security and safety service providers, networks and partnerships (Hoogenboom 2010), in order to resolve security challenges of old bureaucratic and centralized forms of governance
Boko Haram militants have terrorized northeastern Nigeria for more than a decade, driving what the United Nations says are more than two million people from their homes
Three years ago, Boko Haram abducted 110 girls from a school in Dapchi, Nigeria. One girl, Leah Sharibu, remains in captivity
Child advocates in Nigeria estimate that tens of thousands of young people have been orphaned by Boko Haram militant attacks. But some of them are finding reason to be hopeful about their future
Children who escape Boko Haram territory face a raft of violations by the Nigerian authorities, also including crimes under international law. At best, they end up displaced, struggling for survival and with little or no access to education. At worst, they are arbitrarily detained for years in military barracks, in conditions amounting to torture or other ill-treatment.
More than a decade of Boko Haram militant attacks have displaced over two million Nigerians in the north, with hundreds of thousands living in internally displaced people’s camps. Medical experts worry the camps lack the spacing and sanitary conditions to prevent an outbreak of coronavirus, which has so far infected more than 370 people in Nigeria and killed 10