.65% of Missing Persons were Children when they Disappeared
Maiduguri: 2025 The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has revealed that more than 24,000 Nigerians have been declared missing by their families since 2015, with the majority of cases linked to the protracted armed conflict in the country’s northeast.
Speaking at a media workshop in Maiduguri, María Toscano, Team Leader of the ICRC’s Protection of Family Links program, disclosed that Borno State accounts for the highest number of missing persons, with approximately 9,000 cases out of the 16,000 registered in the region.
Bama Local Government Area alone has recorded around 5,000 disappearances.
Toscano noted that 71 per cent of the reported cases occurred between 2014 and 2015, and alarmingly, 65 per cent of those missing were children at the time of their disappearance.
She emphasised the ongoing challenges in tracing these individuals, citing limited access to conflict-affected areas and difficulties in reaching families.
Despite the grim statistics, the ICRC has facilitated the reunification of 24 individuals with their families over the past two years. However, the organisation acknowledges that thousands remain unaccounted for, leaving families in a state of prolonged anguish and uncertainty.
Diana Japaridze, Head of the ICRC sub-delegation in Maiduguri, expressed deep concern over the rising number of unresolved cases. “Some people spend years searching for loved ones, often with no result.
Families have a right to know their fate,” she said. “In the chaos of armed conflict, separation can happen in minutes, leading to years of emotional trauma.”
Japaridze urged media professionals to play a more active role in raising awareness about the plight of missing persons and the rights of affected families. She called on governments and humanitarian actors to prioritise the issue as a matter of international humanitarian and human rights law.