IOM: Restoring Peace, Livelihoods in Nigeria’s Banditry-Affected North-west 

Francis Sardauna writes that through peace committees, youth empowerment, early-warning systems, livelihoods and psychosocial support, IOM’s EU-funded intervention is restoring peace in banditry-torn communities in Katsina and Zamfara States

For communities in Nigeria’s North-west, the struggle for peace is no longer confined to security operations or the presence of armed personnel. It is increasingly being fought in village meetings, community peace committees, peace-promoting radio jingles and among young people searching for livelihoods in the region. 

This is the approach being adopted by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) under its Conflict Prevention, Crisis Response and Resilience (CPCRR) project implemented in banditry-plagued Batsari, Dandume, Danmusa, Faskari, Jibia, Sabuwa and Safana Local Government Areas of Katsina State, as well as Bungudu and Gusau Local Government Areas of Zamfara State.

Funded by the European Union and jointly implemented by IOM, Mercy Corps and Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD), the CPCRR is restoring peace, preventing violence and monitoring early warning signs to rebuilding livelihoods, supporting victims and strengthening relationships between communities in the states.

The IOM’s critical intervention comes against the backdrop of a deteriorating humanitarian situation orchestrated by the nefarious activities of bandits and natural disasters in the region, where the organisation says 737,073 people have been rendered homeless across the region.

About 620,000, representing 84 per cent of the 737,073 internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the region, the humanitarian organization revealed that they are displaced by violence, including banditry and kidnapping besetting Nigeria’s North-west region.

At its maiden Katsina press conference and media parley which brought together journalists from both print and broadcast media organisations, the IOM said its latest assessment showed that Katsina State alone had 181,000 IDPs, while neighbouring Zamfara State recorded more than 261,000.

According to statistics presented to journalists at the media chat by the organisation, nearly 147,000 returnees had also been recorded across the region,  including more than 37,000 in Katsina State, while 147,000 returnees are struggling to rebuild their lives after displacement by the marauding bandits and natural disasters. 

“So people are being displaced, but people are also trying to go home. The question is not simply: Have they returned? The real question is: Can they stay? Can they rebuild their lives? Can they feel safe again?” the Chief of Mission, IOM Nigeria, Sharon Dimanche, asked during the media parley. 

These unnerving questions and statistics underline the scale of the humanitarian crisis in the region and the need to move beyond emergency responses to interventions that would nip the root causes of displacement in the bud for sustainable peace and development to thrive in the region.

In view of this, the IOM, through its Conflict Prevention, Crisis Response and Resilience project, has taken proactive and revolving measures to curtail the root causes of displacement and factors that allow conflict and vulnerability to persist in the agrarian North-west region.

One of these measures taken by the organisation is the establishment of 80 Community Peace and Resilience Committees (CPRCs) across Katsina and Zamfara States to identify tensions, prevent conflicts and respond to early warning signs before disputes escalate into violence.

Similarly, more  than 1,700 community members and stakeholders have been trained on conflict prevention and Early Warning Early Response (EWER) mechanisms. 160 key informants in conflict hotspots and transhumance corridors were equally engaged to identify and respond to conflict in order to avert escalation. 

The IOM intervention also monitored 241 transhumance movements, involving 2,405 herders and 60,440 livestock, while producing and disseminating 11 Early Warning and Early Response and Transhumance Flow Monitoring reports.

This strategy reflects a shift from responding only after violence has occurred to anticipating potential flashpoints and strengthening communities’ ability to act early. It also provides avenues for problems to be identified and resolved before they become crises.

Also, under the CPCRR project, 300 at-risk youths have been trained in peacebuilding and skills acquisition, and some of them were supported with integrated livelihood kits designed to give them opportunities to earn a living and become financially independent.

Placing youths at the centre of its peacebuilding strategy in the North-west region where unemployment and poverty have left many young people vulnerable to conflict, the humanitarian organization has recognised that empowering youths to become self-reliant is crucial in taming insecurity, poverty and ensuring lasting peace. 

Recognising the link between economic hardship and vulnerability to conflict, the IOM has invested heavily in community recovery and livelihoods. For instance, 13 quick impact projects had been awarded and completed in Katsina State.

These projects include solar-powered boreholes, blocks of classrooms, veterinary clinics and other critical infrastructure, directly benefiting no fewer than 51,492 people across the governments where the CPCRR project is being implemented. The water facilities had reduced pressure over scarce resources, veterinary clinics protect livestock-dependent livelihoods and the schools restore educational opportunities disrupted by insecurity.

Therefore, these projects are designed not merely as physical infrastructure but as practical interventions that are significantly improving daily life and rebuilding confidence in communities affected by crises. To mitigate climate-change, the IOM distributed 4,000 economic tree seedlings to 2,000 households, thereby combining livelihood support with environmental restoration. It also provided climate-smart agricultural farming kits to 300 beneficiaries for dry-season farming.

In Zamfara, 200 beneficiaries received livestock kits, with a similar distribution planned for Katsina State. About 3,000 households are also benefiting from clean-energy cooking stoves and briquettes. The organisation also established 20 cooperatives and Village Savings and Loans schemes across the two states. At the press conference, the Chief of Mission, IOM Nigeria, Dimanche, who delivered her speech virtually, reiterated that the IOM’s peacebuilding and early-warning interventions were aimed at complementing humanitarian assistance by addressing the conditions that could force communities to flee in the first place.

She said the displacement in Katsina and Zamfara should be viewed as a national concern because of its impact on food production, livelihoods, education, access to basic services, local economies, social cohesion and Nigeria’s overall stability and development. She further disclosed that displacement was not merely about movement from one location to another, but also involved the loss of homes, livelihoods, safety and social connections.

Dimanche, however, pointed to signs of progress, noting that across the North-west and North-central regions, the assessed number of IDPs declined by nearly five per cent between October 2025 and February 2026, while the number of returnees increased by nearly five per cent. She cautioned that returning home did not automatically translate into a durable solution, stressing that returnees needed security, livelihoods, education and basic services to rebuild their lives.

The IOM chief also stressed the importance of peacebuilding and early-warning mechanisms in preventing conflicts from escalating into violence and mass displacement. She added: “When early warning works, the result may never make the news. A dispute is resolved. A farmer remains on his land. Children remain in school. A family does not have to flee. That is peacebuilding in very practical terms.

“If we are serious about reducing displacement, we cannot only become better at responding after people flee. We have to become better at preventing the conditions that force them to flee in the first place.”

Also speaking, the IOM Head of Sub-office, North-west, Jean Nahesi Kutumbakana, said the organisation had supported the production and broadcast of 3,353 radio jingles in Hausa, English and Fulfulde across three radio stations in Katsina and Zamfara. He said the radio jingles were designed to promote peace and address issues capable of driving conflict, adding that the organisation conducted participatory drama performances and engaged 3,122 people to curtail misinformation, social cohesion and conflict drivers.

He added that the awareness and media peace campaigns reached 506,574 people, noting, however, that 50 psychosocial team members, comprising 25 men and 25 women, were also trained and deployed in communities across the two states.  He maintained that the team provided protection and MHPSS services to 49,316 people, including boys, girls, men and women, reiterating that 99 people were trained on fundamental Sexual and Gender-Based Violence principles, protection and psychosocial support.

Kutumbakana said: “The programme also supported 552 women, men, youths and persons with disabilities through integrated livelihood and psychosocial interventions. This approach recognises that rebuilding a conflict-affected community requires more than restoring physical infrastructure. People must also regain a sense of dignity, security and belonging. Destroyed houses can be seen. An abandoned farm can be measured. But the psychological scars carried by people who have experienced violence, displacement or loss can remain hidden.

“IOM has therefore incorporated protection and Mental Health and Psychosocial Support (MHPSS) into the CPCRR intervention. We have also provided peacebuilding and skills training to at-risk youths. Livelihood kits have been provided to support their economic reintegration, while sporting and awareness activities have been organised to promote peaceful coexistence.”

But for vulnerable households in Katsina, Zamfara and other states in the North-west region, the IOM’s  interventions provide more than immediate assistance: they offer a pathway towards economic independence and reduced reliance on humanitarian support. Therefore, establishing community peace structures, training local actors to detect early warning signs, empowering people, supporting livelihoods, providing psychosocial care, strengthening strategic communication and rebuilding critical infrastructure, are indicators that IOM is restoring peace and rebuilding livelihoods in banditry-torn communities in the North-west region.