Over 20,000 People Reported Missing In Nigeria – Says ICRC

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has revealed that a staggering 24,025 people are missing in Nigeria, with the majority hailing from the country’s Northeast.

This alarming figure is primarily attributed to the decade-long Boko Haram insurgency, which has ravaged the states of Borno, Adamawa, and Yobe.

During a commemoration of the World Day of Disappeared Persons in Maiduguri, Lillian Dube, head of the ICRC’s sub-delegation office, explained that the data was compiled in partnership with the Nigeria Red Cross Society (NRCS).

She emphasized that the actual number of missing persons is likely much higher, as the recorded cases represent only a portion of the total.

According to Dube, over half of the missing individuals were children at the time of their disappearance. While 492 cases have been resolved, 1,364 families have received news about the fate of their loved ones.

The ICRC and NRCS are currently monitoring 618 separated children who are searching for their relatives. Four of these children have been successfully reunited with their families.

The organization has also exchanged 1,286 messages and facilitated seven phone calls to help reconnect separated family members.

To address the psychological and emotional trauma experienced by families of the missing, the ICRC has provided psychosocial, economic, legal, and administrative support to over 600 families.

The organization has also disseminated messages on how to prevent family separations through various channels, including radio, posters, leaflets, and social media.

In an effort to locate missing individuals, the ICRC has broadcast the names of 8,788 missing persons on the radio and announced them in communities, urging anyone with information to contact the affected families.