Borno State Government has said no fewer than 8,000 former Boko Haram members and their families have been successfully reintegrated into society under its ongoing deradicalisation and rehabilitation programme.
The Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Development, Zuwaira Gambo, disclosed this on Saturday in Maiduguri, noting that the initiative has recorded about 75 per cent success.
She said the programme, championed by Governor Babagana Umara Zulum, remains a critical component of the state’s broader peace-building and post-insurgency recovery efforts in the North-East.
Gambo explained that the mass surrender of insurgents and their families placed a significant humanitarian burden on the state, necessitating the establishment of structured rehabilitation frameworks.
According to her, many of those who surrendered were not frontline fighters but individuals who played support roles within insurgent networks.
She added that a large number of the beneficiaries were women and children, many of whom arrived at rehabilitation centres with deep trauma, health challenges, and little or no exposure to formal society.
“These are women coming out with trauma, including experiences of gender-based violence and other psychosocial challenges,” she said.
Gambo further revealed that several of the children had never lived in organised communities or seen basic infrastructure before their rehabilitation.
She said the government responded by deploying trained social workers and establishing temporary schools, healthcare services, and vocational training centres to aid their reintegration.
The commissioner also dismissed concerns about recidivism among rehabilitated individuals, insisting that those who renounce insurgency are often rejected by the same groups they once belonged to.
She reaffirmed the state government’s commitment to sustaining the programme as part of efforts to restore lasting peace and stability in the region.
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