Nigerian State and Responses to Plights of Persons Internally Displaced by Boko Haram Insurgents: Implications for Socio-Economic and Political Development

Abstract

The daunting challenge currently confronting the Nigerian state is how to alleviate the plights of internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the northeast occasioned by violent activities of Boko Haram insurgents. Since Boko Haram insurgents started their campaign of terror against the Nigerian state in the North-east in 2009, many lives have been lost while properties worth millions of naira have been destroyed, forcing many people to flee their homes for safety areas. Obviously, the most affected persons are vulnerable groups such as children, aged and women who are exposed to severe socio-economic, political, psychological, medical and environmental hazards. These sorry states of affairs have become serious sources of worries to governments, academics and other critical stakeholders in the Nigeria project. Despite the serious academic questions provoked by the plights of the IDPs and obvious need to demystify their socio-economic and political implications, extant studies had paid fleeting attention to this all important aspect of knowledge. This lacuna poses challenges of policy and analysis to government as there is no research informed explanations to guide its policy formulation and implementation on the on the matter. It is this void that this study strives to fill. The study adopts qualitative methods in carrying out its investigation. As such the study employs documentary data for it investigation while content analysis is utilized for data analysis. The theoretical framework that anchors the study is the social exclusion theory. The study discovered that the IDPs in the north east suffer challenges of starvation, accommodation, unemployment, school dropouts, sexual harassment, child labour, early marriage, poor health and sanitation. The implication of the findings is that the situation constitutes a setback to Nigeria development as it further compounds and complicates the already existing challenge of poor living standard in the region and invariably account for Nigeria’s low development index. The study recommends among others; that government should make more concerted efforts to provide the needs of the displaced persons while it expedites actions to end up the insurgency. The study equally recommended for the interventions of the international humanitarian agencies, philanthropic organizations and public spirited individuals to ameliorate the plights of the IDPs.

Keywords: Nigerian State, Internally Displaced Persons, Boko Haram, Insurgency,           Socio-Economic and Political Implications