Suspected Boko Haram members. File photo
Lawan Wakilbe, commissioner for education, science, technology and innovation in Borno state, has raised the alarm over the prevalence of prostitution among former Boko Haram captives.
The commissioner said this during a courtesy visit by Hamsatu Allamin, chief executive officer (CEO) of the Allamin Foundation for Peace, on Friday in Maiduguri.
Wakilbe said cases of prostitution are prevalent in Bama, Banki, and Gwoza LGAs.
He added that some of the freed victims were exposed to sexual abuse due to their vulnerability while in the terrorists’ den.
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“I recently encountered an 11-year-old girl surrounded by three children. It was heartbreaking. The Cameroonian authorities repatriated young girls aged 13 to 15 with multiple children,” he said.
“These vulnerable individuals need urgent reintegration and support.”
He added that the spate of sexual abuse could be “attributed to poverty and lack of viable alternatives for survival”.
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About 276 girls were kidnapped from the Government Girls Secondary School, Chibok, Borno state on April 14, 2014.
Since then, a number of them have regained freedom. 57 of the girls escaped on the night they were kidnapped, while three of the girls were later found.
Twenty-one of the girls were released in October, 2016 while 82 were released on May 6. More have regained freedom over the past few years.
The insurgency has led to the deaths of more than 50,000 people in Nigeria’s north-east region and the displacement of over two million from their homes since 2009.
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