Kaduna’s train attacks add to Nigeria’s deep security problems

The March 2022 attacks on the Abuja-Kaduna railway, which resulted in deaths and 168 kidnappings, indicate a shift toward targeting state infrastructure by bandits and violent extremists. These groups, including Boko Haram and Ansaru, fund their operations through a kidnapping economy, with an estimated US$18.34 million paid in ransoms between 2011 and 2020. The attacks threaten the economic viability of the railway, which generates N300 million monthly, and highlight the need for intelligence-led security and the resolution of underlying socio-economic issues like poverty and corruption.

• The March 28, 2022, attack on a Kaduna-bound train resulted in at least eight deaths and the kidnapping of 168 passengers, an event attributed to the failure of authorities to act on intelligence.
• There is an increasing connection between bandits and jihadist groups, such as Ansaru and Boko Haram, who are primary actors in terror and violent crime across north-central and north-west Nigeria.
• Recent violence indicates a strategic shift toward targeting state infrastructure, including military bases and airports in Kaduna State, moving beyond traditional banditry to cause mass terror and casualties.
• Banditry is sustained by a 'kidnapping economy'; SB Morgen Intelligence estimates that Nigerians paid approximately US$18.34 million (N8.98 billion) in ransoms between June 2011 and March 2020, with 60% of that total paid from January 2016 to March 2020.
• The Abuja-Kaduna railway is a critical economic asset generating at least N300 million monthly; attacks on this line threaten local economies, public transport, and the resuscitation of other rail networks like Lagos-Kano and Port Harcourt-Maiduguri.

APA

Badiora, A., & Onuoha, F. (2022). Kaduna’s train attacks add to Nigeria’s deep security problems. Institute for Security Studies. https://issafrica.org/iss-today/kadunas-train-attacks-add-to-nigerias-deep-security-problems

Chicago

Badiora, Adewumi, and Freedom Onuoha. Kaduna’s train attacks add to Nigeria’s deep security problems. Institute for Security Studies, 2022. https://issafrica.org/iss-today/kadunas-train-attacks-add-to-nigerias-deep-security-problems.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Badiora |first1=Adewumi |last2=Onuoha |first2=Freedom |title=Kaduna’s train attacks add to Nigeria’s deep security problems |publisher=Institute for Security Studies |date=7 April 2022 |url=https://issafrica.org/iss-today/kadunas-train-attacks-add-to-nigerias-deep-security-problems |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{badiora2022kadunas, author = {Badiora, Adewumi and Onuoha, Freedom}, title = {{Kaduna’s train attacks add to Nigeria’s deep security problems}}, institution = {Institute for Security Studies}, year = {2022}, month = apr, url = {https://issafrica.org/iss-today/kadunas-train-attacks-add-to-nigerias-deep-security-problems}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }