Between May 2023 and April 2024, Nigerians paid an estimated ₦2.23 trillion as ransom to kidnappers, according to the latest Crime Experience and Security Perception Survey by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). The report, published on Tuesday, revealed that 65 percent of households affected by kidnapping paid ransoms to secure the release of abducted family members. On average, a ransom payment amounted to ₦2,670,693, contributing to the staggering total.
The NBS estimated a total of 2,235,954 kidnapping incidents nationwide during the 12-month period. Rural areas experienced significantly more cases (1,668,104) compared to urban areas (567,850). A breakdown by region showed that the North-West recorded the highest number of incidents with 1,420,307 cases, followed by the North-Central with 317,837 cases, while the South-East reported the lowest with 110,432 cases.
The survey found that 80.5 percent of households affected by kidnapping reported the incidents to the police. The South-South zone had the highest reporting rate at 100 percent, followed by the North-Central zone with 89.6 percent, while the North-West zone had the lowest rate at 73.9 percent. Urban households were more likely to report kidnappings (87.1 percent) than rural households (77.3 percent).
The NBS report also provided insights into the outcomes of reported kidnapping cases. It revealed that 82.1 percent of abducted persons were released, 12.8 percent were killed, and 3.3 percent remained in captivity as of the report’s publication.
The findings highlight the pervasive threat of kidnapping in Nigeria and its devastating economic and emotional toll on affected families. Experts have called for intensified efforts to address insecurity, particularly in the North-West, where the majority of incidents were recorded. This report underscores the urgent need for comprehensive security reforms and enhanced law enforcement to curb the rising trend of kidnappings across the country.