The huge disparity between kidnapping figures in northern and southern Nigeria is largely driven by the nature of the groups operating in both regions, a report by SBM Intelligence has said. According to the 2026 edition of its Economics of Nigeria’s Kidnap Industry report, syndicated bandit and jihadist groups in the North have the capacity […]

Kidnap-related incidents, the report explains, are "security-force operations against kidnappers", a development that "brought about the deaths of at least 1,142 people."

Nigeria’s kidnapping epidemic has evolved from a fragmented criminal enterprise into a windfall for insurgents. Even as the number of...