P-ISSN: 2808-0467

E-ISSN: 2808-5051

Homepage: https://iss.internationaljournallabs.com/index.php/iss

1617

BORDER INSECURITY AND THE CHALLENGES OF

TRANSNATIONAL TERRORISM IN NORTH EAST NIGERIA

Ishaku Hamidu

INTRODUCTION

of states uses its operatives to ensure the security of its territory and citizens. It is because poor

management of borders can cause internal and external insecurity that may affects

sociopolitical and economic activities or development in the country (Ewetan & Urhie, 2014).

security on the lives, properties and socioeconomic activities and the implications on the people

of North-eastern Nigeria border paradigm.

1618 Interdisciplinary Social Studies, 2(2), Nov 2022

Border Security and Insecurity

state against unlawful cross-border operations such as the importation of illegal goods such as

drugs, weapons, and ammunition. Corroborating with the above, Nelson et al. (2010), noted

that “the managing of the flow of people, goods and other tangible items across national

boundaries” is what border security connote.

North-East Nigeria

that one of Nigeria's administrative regions known as the North Eastern State is the North East

geopolitical zone. On May 27

, 1967, it was formed from the Northern area. It had Maiduguri

as its capital. The North Eastern state was separated into Bauchi, Borno, and Gongola on

February 3rd, 1976. Six further states were created from these three. For instance, the former

Borno State was split into the present-day states of Borno and Yobe on August 27, 1991. The

former Gongola State was split into Adamawa State and Taraba State on the same day as well.

In October 1996, the former Bauchi State was split into the current Bauchi State and the Gombe

referred to as trans-border crime. These criminal actions are often carried out for monetary

gain, socio-political gain, or religious motivations. It is a collection of crimes whose

perpetrators and effects transcend national boundaries. These would include, but are not limited

to, cross-border terrorism, drug trafficking, illegal oil bunkering, illegal diamond trafficking,

money laundering, human trafficking, drug and alcohol trafficking, illegal drug sales, and

trafficking in firearms.

politics' inherent defenses, acting as the HIV virus of the modern state. Williams claimed that

most states had the ability to contain this threat in the past, but this is no longer clearly the case.

This means trans-border crime is not a new phenomenon. Collaborating with the above,

1619 Interdisciplinary Social Studies, 2(2), Nov 2022

between neighbors, made poverty worse, and provided opportunities for criminal groups to

form cross-border or even multinational networks.

cross border activities in terms of transporting of goods and services by both nationalities and

aliens of one country to another. Trans-border crime is most often the work of networked gangs

of traffickers that receive at times support locally and from well-structured sources across

countries (Ellis & Akpala, 2011). International Terrorism is the terrorist attacks that affect

North-East Nigeria has graduated from mere domestic to an international terrorist group as she

relates with Islamic State of Iran and Levant (ISIL) which gave her the power to operate as

Islamic State in West Africa Province (ISWAP), in spite of some internal challenges.

Theoretical Framework

century as a

result of the growing interconnectedness of people and the diminishing economic and social

significance of national boundaries (Wikipedia, 2016). This theory viewed that the increased

interaction between non-state actors across the borders has led to several impact on the

according to Iheanacho and Ohazurike (2019) is appropriate in studying and understanding

cross border interactions and activities between states and non-state actors and even among

other salient actors. The theory is used in this study because it helps to explain how and why

people connect within and across the northern borders of Nigeria and engage in unlawful

activity and trade that the government finds challenging to put an end to.

METHOD

and internet materials were collated. The contents or views of the various authors are analyzed

or discussed thematically below.

st

international boundary between the Republic of Nigeria and Republic of Benin is about 773

1620 Interdisciplinary Social Studies, 2(2), Nov 2022

kilometers; Nigeria and Cameroon boundary span about 1,690 kilometers; Nigeria/Chad border

is 85 kilometers through the Lake Chad; Nigeria share 1,497 kilometer border with Niger and

then with Guinea on the coastal areas (Mbah, 2012; Umara, 2014; Yenwong-Fai, 2012). These

Nigerian neighbours also share international boundaries with other countries that serve as gate

way to Europe. For example, Chad is strategically located between North Africa, East Africa

and Central Africa where there had been extreme religious and political tension (Mbah, 2012;

Yenwong-Fai, 2012).

foreign exchange/revenue for the nation; to check and halt illegal weapons, contraband goods

from in or out of the country. The Government is to make sure the lives and economy of its

citizens at the borders is well protected as well as the welfare of the frontline settler’s are

catered for. In view of the imperatives above, Nigeria have military and paramilitary

organizations that are trained and paid to man those entry and exit routes in the border towns.

The Nigeria Custom and Immigrations services and others are at the borders of the North-East.

The Military (Army, Air force and Navy) also monitor activities in and across the border for

national security and development (Hamidu, 2017).

go unhindered and without records which posed security threat to the nation’s security and

socioeconomic development. He opined that unscrupulous elements either from any of the

neighbouring countries or nationals of other remote countries and continents use the same

border for illegal or shabby businesses such as smuggling of contraband goods and other

dangerous substances or chemicals; arms and ammunitions; trafficking in persons etc. which

can affect both national, sub-regional and even continental peace, security and development.

Corroborating with the above, Mailabari and Hamidu (2015) also noted that most frontline

states and border town settlements in Nigeria are not developed and secured when compared

to other parts of the settlements in the interior. Such insecurities have therefore led to or caused

several unfortunate incidences such as:

Boko Haram has become a transnational terrorist organization operating beyond the

1621 Interdisciplinary Social Studies, 2(2), Nov 2022

shores of Nigeria under the name Islamic State in West African Province (ISWAP).

The terrorists also exploit such border insecurity as opportunities to recruit, camp,

radicalize youths both within and across, and execute their plans against their

enemies/targets. For instance, the group’s strong grip of the Sambisa forest and the

Lake Chad basin axis, gives them access to weapons, personnel and income that keeps

the group going. Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) has been moving through

the Sahel towards Mali, Mauritania, and Niger. Indeed, there are indications that AQIM

Haram, which has its roots in Nigeria, poses a monumental danger to Nigeria’s

neighbours since its influence spread across the Nigerian borders. The abundance of

permeable borders in the West African Sub Region greatly increases the risks posed by

this violent group. Target nations include Chad, Benin, Cameroon, and Niger because

of their proximity to Nigeria, demographics, and socioeconomic ties. These borders'

openness makes it easier for terrorist activity to spread to nearby nations and beyond;

given the relative ease with which terrorist elements can or do cross in and out of those

neighbouring countries. It should be noted that citizens of Cameroon and Niger have

been suspected of participating in militants and terrorist activities as far back as the

the need for swift actions in addressing the problems of trans-border terrorism in

Nigeria (Bashir, 2013).

2) Proliferation of Arms: Border insecurity in North-eastern Nigeria aid smuggling of

continue to exist and the likelihood of effective border management, patrol, and

promotion will be severely hampered as long as the northern Nigerian borders are open

and ineffectively manned by reasonable security officers. According to Krause (2007),

three mechanisms are involved in the illicit trade in weapons: the black markets, covert

government-to-government transactions, and sub-state group sponsorship. While

private aid from arms dealers or charitable interest organizations is not unusual, this

has led to the spread of lawlessness and criminal violence. In response, Musah (2002)

1622 Interdisciplinary Social Studies, 2(2), Nov 2022

stated that many parts of Nigeria are increasingly militarized. Militarization includes

the presence of heavily armed checked points along roads. He stated that in Africa, the

sources of Small Arms and Light Weapons (SALW) proliferation are many and varied.

While the focus of international efforts to reduce proliferation frequently centers on the

production and supply of new weapons, a significant source of SALW continues to be

the stockpiles that the former Soviet Union, the United States, and their allies pumped

into Africa in the 1970s and 1980s to fuel or finance proxy interstate wars. Small Arms

factors, including the breakdown of state structure, lax control over national armouries

and poor service condition for security personnel. Armed robbery and other act of

terrorism are rampant and coercive across the Nigerian North-east borders; protection

and vigilance justice are replacing the incapacitated state security racket. According to

Wesley (2007), globalization also makes nation-state’s border to become vulnerable to

western capitalist manipulation through Military Industrial Complex (MIC).

3) Trafficking in Persons: Over the years, the Nigerian state has come to the limelight as

a country aiding or facilitating trafficking in persons; which may not be unconnected

with poor border paradigm and surveillances in the country. Ingwe et al. (2012)

to earn about US$1,272 in Libya. The criminals first transported the girls and women

through the airport in Kano, northern Nigeria, after obtaining fake passports issued

under false names. However, they later changed their strategy and began trafficking

people through the north-eastern neighbor of Nigeria, the Niger Republic, to Libya

before transporting the women to European countries with the intention of using them

as slaves or prostitution. Large and permeable borders in Nigeria have been attributed

to this serious global crime (IRIN, 2008). This finger-pointing at Nigeria's open borders

for people trafficking is not unrelated to more significant concerns involving historical

socio-economic and political traumas and shortcomings that Nigeria, like other African

nations, have suffered. Human trafficking is defined as the recruitment, transportation,

(ILO, 2005), involving roughly 2.4 million victims.

1623 Interdisciplinary Social Studies, 2(2), Nov 2022

4) Smuggling of goods: Border insecurity made it easier for force migrants in and from

the North-eastern Nigeria to smuggle in goods and services. Increasing migration has

facilitated the development of cross-border social networks that can be activated for

criminal or terrorist purposes (Osinuga, 2013). Smuggling has become more common

and varied with the opportunities provided by the rapid increase in volumes of

internationally traded commodities. The effectiveness of state controls on its borders

has typically depended on the nature of the smuggled commodity, the ease of

West Africa and other places to include but not limited to: Small Arms; Recruitments

of Mercenaries and Child soldiers; Human Trafficking; Narcotics; Money Laundering

and Internet. According to him, the porous, complex and disjointed nature of the

international boundaries of most countries in Africa and most especially in Nigeria are

some of the reasons for the incessant nature of such smuggling crimes.

Implications of Border Insecurity on North-East Nigeria

1) The emergence and unending of transnational terrorism in and beyond North-eastern

4) The discouraging of direct foreign investment in states like Adamawa, Borno and Yobe,

due fear of terrorist attacks and abduction of foreign nationalities;

5) The retarding of cross border trade at both official and non-official levels due to the

risk involved. For instance, the route from Maiduguri to Gamboru/Ngala to Cameroon

and to other north and Central Africa countries; the route from Bama/Banki to

Cameroon; as well as the one along the Lake Chad have suffered several attacks of

commuters, transporters; where some traders were killed, some abducted together with

their goods, hence the military closed those roads for security reasons;

6) The attacking of some Nigerian villages/communities along the common border

(frontline settlers) suffered attacks, collection of their goods or wealth by both the

military authorities halted agricultural activities in the region, and farmers,

1624 Interdisciplinary Social Studies, 2(2), Nov 2022

fishermen/women, and pastoralists operating along Lake Chad were also expelled for

security reasons;

8) The fleeing for safety or joining the criminal gangs by hitherto innocent people. Many

innocent persons hitherto dwelling in the frontline states and those doing business along

the borders suffered untold hardship from various quotas (military or terrorist assaults,

where each of the parties accuse those civilians for siding/supporting the other). Some

young men and women in those places either relocate from those frontline communities

Chad axis. Juxtapose, Some Nigerian refugees in those countries are said to be

maltreated and suspected as terrorists by the people hosting them and security personnel

of the neighbouring countries. The refugees were seen as vagabonds and constitute

nuisance in and to those francophone countries which prompted untimely deportation

of some of them to Nigeria (Nurudeen & Adekola, 2014). Boko Haram terrorism has made

several countries to see Nigeria as terrorist battle ground, either to recruit and train

terrorists or to capture and take possession, especially the northern eastern axis; as Boko

Haram is one of the acknowledged terrorist groups in Sahel and is associated with Al-

Qaeda/ISIL (Ibrahim, 2014).

security in Northeast Nigeria. Border insecurity is a strong motivating factor which must be

checked at all cost by all hands for Nigeria with a promising economy to exist and exert its

authority in continental and global power configuration.

are imperative:

1) Nigeria should as a matter of urgency pay attention to it frontline states and border town

settlers as they serves as the gate way from the North-east. This is to particularly provide

good security, medical, educational and other facilities to make the people settling there

to be loyal and supportive to the state against any alien movements;

2) The welfare and wellbeing of the security operatives at the borders, especially in the

required to boost deeper collaborations between the various security operatives in the

1625 Interdisciplinary Social Studies, 2(2), Nov 2022

land and border agencies so as to generate intelligent information, as well as the

standardization of policies against cross border crimes and transnational terrorism;

5) The governments of Nigeria, Chad, Cameroon, and Niger should redoubled their efforts

and strengthen border security nexus that will prevent the spread of transnational

terrorism and curb proliferations of SALW across their common borders;

6) The Multinational Joint Tasks Forces (MJTF) formed as a response to transnational

terrorism, by Nigeria, Niger, Chad and Cameroon republics should be well funded to

REFERENCES

Addo, P. (2006). Cross Border Criminal Activities in West Africa : Options for Effective

Responses.

Agbedahin, K. (2014). From control to parasitism: Interrogating the roles of border control

agencies on the Ghana–Togo border. African Security Review, 23(4).

https://doi.org/10.1080/10246029.2014.955864

Ajayi, O. (2019, August 1). Boko Haram insurgency far from over — UN. Vanguard.

Bashir, M. (2013, August 2). Nigeria: Defence Headquarters - Insurgents’ Trainer Captured

Ellis, T., & Akpala, J. (2011). Making Sense of the Relationship between Trafficking in

Persons, Human Smuggling, and Organised Crime: The Case of Nigeria. Police Journal,

84(1). https://doi.org/10.1350/pojo.2011.84.1.507

Ering, S. O. (2011). Trans-border Crime and Its Socio-economic Impact on Developing

Economies. Journal of Sociology and Social Anthropology, 2(2).

https://doi.org/10.1080/09766634.2011.11885550

Ewetan, O. O., & Urhie, E. (2014). Insecurity and socio-economic development in Nigeria.

Journal of Sustainable Development Studies, 5(1).

Ibrahim, Y. I. (2014). Boko Haram insurgence and its implications for Nigerian foreign policy.

In I. Bello (Ed.), National Security and Development in Contemporary Nigeria (Vol. 2).

Politics, 3, 65–93.