How kidnappings are hitting Nigeria’s Borno families hard

Maiduguri, Nigeria – When Musa Abdullahi Wakawa learned that his wife and seven-year-old son had been abducted, disbelief quickly gave way to fear.

Then came the question confronting many families caught in Nigeria’s kidnapping crisis: How could he raise the ransom demanded for their release?

For days, Musa searched for a way to bring his family home, confronting the financial burden imposed by the kidnappers.

Across northeastern Nigeria, families sell livestock, seek loans, dispose of property and exhaust savings in the hope of securing the release of loved ones.

In Borno State, kidnapping has become more than a security threat. Families are losing money, living with the trauma of abduction and, in some communities, keeping their children away from school.

Laraba Dauda, 45, still remembers the last conversation she had with her younger sister.

Her sister was abducted on January 13, 2026, along the Biu–Buratai road, according to Laraba.

Shortly after the abduction, the phone rang. Her sister was calling from somewhere in the bush.