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Maiduguri, Nigeria – When Musa Abdullahi Wakawa learned that his wife and seven-year-old son had been abducted, disbelief quickly gave way to fear.
Then came the question confronting many families caught in Nigeria’s kidnapping crisis: How could he raise the ransom demanded for their release?
For days, Musa searched for a way to bring his family home, confronting the financial burden imposed by the kidnappers.
Across northeastern Nigeria, families sell livestock, seek loans, dispose of property and exhaust savings in the hope of securing the release of loved ones.
In Borno State, kidnapping has become more than a security threat. Families are losing money, living with the trauma of abduction and, in some communities, keeping their children away from school.
‘Please just help me with your prayers’
Laraba Dauda, 45, still remembers the last conversation she had with her younger sister.
Her sister was abducted on January 13, 2026, along the Biu–Buratai road, according to Laraba.
Shortly after the abduction, the phone rang. Her sister was calling from somewhere in the bush.
“Aunty, unknown people have kidnapped us and taken us somewhere in the bush. We don’t know where they are taking us. At this moment, Aunty, please just help me with your prayers,” Laraba recalled her sister saying.
The call ended in tears.
Her sister has not returned home.
Months later, Laraba and her family still do not know where she is being held or whether she is safe.
Laraba is calling on the Nigerian government to intensify efforts to rescue those still in captivity.
“We need the government to come to our aid and help rescue our relatives who have spent more than six months in captivity,” she said.
A journey that never reached Maiduguri
For Anjikwi Hena, his son’s disappearance came just as the family was looking towards a better future.
His son was abducted on March 30, 2026, according to Hena.
He had completed his education and was preparing to travel to Maiduguri in search of work. His father encouraged him and prayed for his success.
Instead, the young man disappeared into captivity.
Hena said their close relationship has made the uncertainty especially painful.
When schools become unsafe
The kidnapping crisis is also threatening education in communities already weakened by years of rebellion.
In Askira-Uba Local Government Area of Borno State, only 56 of 113 primary schools are currently functioning, according to Fasuma Askira, the local government education secretary.
Before the May attack in Mussa, 76 primary schools were operating. The threat of violence subsequently forced authorities to close another 20, leaving only 56 functioning.
On May 15, suspected rebel fighters attacked Mussa and abducted dozens of children. A register later obtained by news services identified 40 missing children, although figures provided by the community and government have varied.
The Borno State government has more recently referred to about 44 children still missing from Mussa.
Then, on June 29, armed rebels attacked the Government Day Secondary School in Lassa while students were taking National Examinations Council examinations.
Some students were recovered shortly after the attack, but 36 students and a teacher have been reported as remaining in captivity.
The attacks have deepened fears among parents and teachers already living with the threat of rebel violence.
The education authority moved junior secondary students from Mussa to a government boarding school in Uba and advised the local government to deploy community vigilantes around schools.
Soldiers have also been deployed in Mussa and Lassa alongside local vigilantes, according to the Askira.
For families in these communities, keeping children in school now means weighing access to education against the risk of further attacks.
Borno’s crisis reflects a national problem
The situation in Borno is part of a wider kidnapping crisis across Nigeria.
Amnesty International Nigeria says at least 1,100 people were abducted across the country between January and April 2026, while warning that the actual figure could be considerably higher because many incidents in remote communities go unreported.
“Apart from killing people, gunmen are now on a rampage of abductions, largely for lucrative ransom,” said Isa Sanusi, director of Amnesty International Nigeria.
“Some stay months at the mercy of gunmen in punishing situations.”
Amnesty says victims can face torture, starvation and sexual violence, while families are often forced to raise money under extreme pressure.
The organisation has also warned that fear of abduction is pushing children out of school, particularly in rural communities.
Government says security and humanitarian measures are under way
Borno State Commissioner for Information and Internal Security Usman Tar said the government was using both military and nonmilitary measures to confront insecurity.
He acknowledged that the state has several security hotspots, including the Biu-Buratai axis and the Biu-Damboa-Sabon Gari area.
“We are putting in place both kinetic and non-kinetic measures in order to overcome the problem,” Tar said.
He said the state government was working closely with the armed forces by providing additional logistical support and civilian volunteers to assist field operations.
“This has enabled us to dominate the hotspot axis,” he said, adding that attacks had reduced in some affected areas.
The government is also using technology as part of its response, including drones equipped with thermal capabilities to monitor the movement of criminals, Tar said.
Authorities, he added, were advising commuters to avoid dangerous routes where necessary, and working to ensure that people involved in kidnapping and other criminal activities were prosecuted.
Tar acknowledged the humanitarian and psychological impact on families.
He said senior government officials had visited affected families to offer condolences and reassurance, while authorities also provided financial assistance through the State Emergency Management Agency and the state humanitarian agency.
“There are fixed sums that are provided through the State Emergency Management Agency and the State Humanitarian Agency,” Tar said, adding that other legitimate mechanisms were also used to make funding available to affected families.
He said the government viewed “terrorism and criminality” as problems that required more than military action.
“Terrorism is a multinational problem,” he said.
He pointed to poverty, unemployment and illiteracy as socioeconomic factors that can contribute to insecurity, saying federal and state governments were working to improve people’s access to necessities while ensuring that criminals face the law.
When kidnapping becomes a business
Security analyst Professor Khalifa Dikwa described the kidnapping situation as “pathetic”, warning that there were no clear signs that the crisis would end soon.
He said kidnapping for ransom had “metamorphosed into a profit-making venture”, with different armed groups competing for territory and, at times, fighting for dominance in forest areas.
According to Dikwa, ransom payments help sustain criminal networks, finance weapons purchases and attract younger recruits.
That creates a cycle in which communities already struggling with poverty are forced to finance the groups terrorising them.
Families may sell possessions to secure one relative’s release, only to face another ransom demand when someone else is abducted.
Dikwa argued that the government needs stronger intelligence- and technology-driven operations to locate armed groups and disrupt the movement of ransom money.
He also called for security agencies to receive modern weapons, night-vision equipment and tracking technology, alongside improved welfare for soldiers and other security personnel operating on the front lines.
For families, paying ransom may be the only immediate way to try to save someone they love. For armed groups, successful ransom payments can provide the resources and incentive to carry out further abductions.
The cost of waiting
Musa is waiting for his wife and young son. Laraba is waiting for her sister. Hena is waiting for the son who was preparing to leave home in search of work.
In Askira-Uba, 20 primary schools have closed since the Mussa attack, while dozens of children remain unaccounted for.
During their final phone call, Laraba’s sister told her:
“This is my last communication.”
