This report analyses common assumptions about the banditry conflict in the North West of Nigeria and how they map onto other societal fault lines between farmers and herders and Hausa and Fulani communities.
The findings in this report are based on quantitative data collected in two rounds of a panel survey collected between January and March 2024 and January and February 2025 in three States affected by banditry violence: Katsina, Sokoto and Zamfara. By questioning certain common narratives around the banditry conflict, livelihoods and tribal affiliation, this report aims to inform a more nuanced approach to the conflict and responses to violence.
Citation: Johanna Kleffmann, Moritz Hoene, Francesca Batault, Kato Van Broeckhoven, Siobhan O’Neil, Jente Althuis, Mohammed Bukar, and Fatima Yetcha Ajimi Badu, "Exposure, Not Identity? Understanding Victimization by Bandits in Nigeria’s North West”, Findings Report 47, UNIDIR, Geneva, 2025, https://doi.org/10.37559/MEAC/25/11.