Nigerian Emerges 6th Most Affected Country By Terrorism In The World

Nigeria has been named the sixth most affected country in the world by terrorism for the year 2024.

This was contained in a ranking released on Wednesday by the Global Terrorism Index (GTI).

The GTI report by the Institute for Economics and Peace ranks 163 countries on a terrorism impact scale using indicators such as the number of terrorist incidents, fatalities, injuries, and hostages.

Naija News understands that Nigeria was named among Sahelian countries that accounted for 51 percent of global terrorism deaths last year as GTI found that terrorism in the Sahel has increased significantly, with deaths rising nearly tenfold since 2009.

According to the index, Nigeria recorded 565 deaths from terrorist activity in 2024.

The report noted that while the number of attacks decreased by 37 percent, part of a wider positive trend noted in sub-Saharan Africa, fatalities still rose by six percent.

The report identified Boko Haram and the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) as the major terrorist groups responsible for carrying out terrorism in the country, with Yobe identified as a hotspot for violence.

The report cited weak governance, ethnic tensions, and ecological degradation as factors that have created a conducive environment for terrorism to persist.

The GTI report also identified the competition for the mining of mineral resources as a major contributor to the terrorism activities in the region.

“Gold is a major flashpoint in Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger. Niger supplies more than 25% of European uranium,” the report said, noting that Russian presence has grown significantly in the region while France is withdrawing.

“Niger illustrates the fragility of progress in the region,” the report added.

The report ranked Burkina Faso as the most affected country by terrorism, followed by Pakistan, Syria, Mali, and Niger.

Somalia, Israel, Afghanistan, and Cameroon trailed behind Nigeria.

Globally, the most deaths from terrorism were recorded in Pakistan, Syria, and Burkina Faso, with the West African country responsible for one-fifth of all deaths globally.

In terms of perpetrators, the Islamic State (IS) remained the deadliest organisation, causing 1,805 deaths across 22 countries in 2024, one more than the prior year.