Kaduna State Governor, Senator Uba Sani, has raised concerns over the growing insecurity in Northern Nigeria, attributing it largely to poverty, unemployment, and lack of economic opportunities among the youth.
Speaking on Sunday during an interview on Channels TV’s Sunday Politics, Governor Sani said over 60 to 65 percent of people in Northern Nigeria, particularly in the Northwest, have no sustainable means of livelihood, a situation he believes has made many young people vulnerable to recruitment by bandit groups.
“When I became governor in 2023, I conducted a poverty and economic analysis of Kaduna and the North in general,”;; he said.
“It showed that over 60 to 65 percent of our people, especially in the Northwest, have no access to economic opportunities. That’s why it is very easy to recruit these young people into banditry.”;;
He added that the region’s security crisis cannot be solved by military might alone, stressing the need for a broader, people-centered approach that tackles root causes like poverty and joblessness.
“This insecurity we are facing is caused by economic hardship, poverty, and unemployment,”;; Sani said.
“We cannot resolve this issue completely in 10 years because it has been growing for decades. We kept quiet, and we failed to take the necessary steps early enough.”;;
The governor also lamented the high number of out-of-school children in the North.
According to him, over 350,000 children were roaming the streets in Kaduna State alone at the time he assumed office.
“In Nigeria, we have about 18.2 million out-of-school children, and over 70 percent of them are in Northern Nigeria,”;; he said, citing data from consultations with the World Bank and UNICEF.
Governor Sani called on northern leaders to unite and collectively confront the region’s security and development challenges.
