With large tracts of ungoverned spaces across Northwest Nigeria, under their control, bandits have virtually destabilized the region. The loss of lives and property has been on the increase. The humanitarian crisis has been high, and the economic costs are unquantifiable. The fear that jihadists are increasingly linking up with these bandits persists. Tracing the origins and implications of banditry, the paper argues that the government´s inability to address underlying sociocultural and economic challenges faced by the population, especially in the north, is the reason why this phenomenon has reached its current stage. It concluded with recommendations for crafting a solution.

Keywords: Banditry, kidnapping, ransom, Ungoverned spaces, jihadist, insurgency, entrepreneurial banditry,

Cite this article: