Nigeria: Boko Haram Attacks Cripple Northern Region's Economy

Kano — Commercial activities in the northern trade hub of Kano are down by half since 2010 because of the campaign of violence waged by militant group Boko Haram and government efforts to curb it, says the Kano traders' union.

"The north is losing heavily due to the violence. When you destabilize Kano, which is the commercial nerve centre of the north, you are threatening the socioeconomic well-being of the north," Nigeria's Information Minister Labaran Maku told reporters in February 2012.

Danbature Abdulazeez, head of the National Harmonized Traders' Union, estimates trade in Kano is down by half due to closed borders with Niger, Cameroon and Chad; businesses shutting down or moving south for fear of violence; forced relocations; dusk-to-dawn curfews; and a ban on motorcycle-taxis, the principal means of transport in Kano.

Boko Haram has waged a campaign of violence in northern Nigeria, killing 3000 people since the beginning of 2009, according to Human Rights Watch. The violence has largely been concentrated in northeastern Nigeria with Maiduguri, Damaturu and Potiskum hardest hit, but on 20 January 2012 it spread to Kano when coordinated bombing and shooting attacks killed 185 people, making it Boko Haram's deadliest attack to date.

Since then, city residents have suffered regular violent shootings and bombings linked to Boko Haram, forcing people to hunker down in their homes or abandon the city. Over the past year hundreds of businesses have closed or relocated.

"Business has been slow in the last one year and it is increasingly difficult to make ends meet," said a textile trader at Kantin Kwari market, Yahuza Salisu. "Sometimes I spend the whole day in the market without making any sales because traders are no longer coming in due to the [Boko Haram] attacks. I use whatever little sales I make to feed my family."

Salisu plans to pull his children out of private school and put them in a state school as he cannot afford the fees.

"People I know have been killed in Boko Haram attacks and I don't want to be next"

Pius Uche, a furniture-maker in Kano, told IRIN: "I have moved my workshop to Abuja because I feel it is no longer safe to continue to stay and operate here. People I know have been killed in Boko Haram attacks and I don't want to be next."

Liti Kulkul, head of the Kwari Textile Traders' Association, told IRIN his annual turnover had dropped by 62 percent.

Shops, factories close

For Kano's few remaining factories - most of them processing food and beverages, animal hides or plastic goods - shifts have dropped from two per day to one because of recently introduced curfews following Boko Haram attacks, leaving production at about 30 percent of capacity, estimates Ali Madugu, vice-president of the Manufacturers' Association of Nigeria (MAN).

Businesses near police stations were forced to shut down in January 2012 because of terrorist fears.

Ahmad Musa owned a grocery in a row of two dozen shops attached to the headquarters of Nigeria's anti-riots police (Mobile Police) in Kano's Hotoro neighbourhood. "I lost all my capital because I and all the other shop owners were barred from opening our shops, not even to pack up our stock," he told IRIN.

Kano's high production costs and power cuts were already hurting the estimated 100 factories left in the city, said Badamasi Usman, an economics professor at Kano's Bayero University. Some US$15 billion used to flow through Kano's markets each year, and two million traders used to arrive daily from Nigeria and neighbouring countries (Niger, Chad, Cameroon and the Central African Republic), selling goods from factories in the south or imported from Asia.

Motorbike ban

Getting around Kano is also much more difficult due to military and police checkpoints around the city, a city-wide curfew, and a dusk-to-dawn ban on taxi mopeds ('achabas'), the most popular form of inner-city transport. Borno, Yobe, Adamawa, Gombe, Plateau, Lagos and Rivers states have imposed similar bans.

The ban has cost 'achaba' drivers US$9 million a day, according to Chairman of Kano's Amalgamated Commercial Owners and Riders Association (ACOMORAN) Muhammad Sani. Each of Kano's 1.5 million 'achaba' drivers used to earn on average $12 per day, according to ACOMORAN.

Local authorities in Kano imposed the ban following a 19 January 2013 attack on traditional and spiritual leader Ado Bayero, emir of Kano, by a group of gunmen on motorbikes. Five people were killed, including the emir's driver and two guards, but not the emir.

Growing unemployment among traders, taxi drivers and others will only fuel more violence, warns Usman. "These frustrated youth can turn to crime and add to the security nightmare we are facing."

Ceasefire?

On 28 January self-professed Boko Haram commander Mohammed Abudlazeez Ibn Idriss announced the group would cease attacks because of the difficult humanitarian situation the violence had caused.

He called on the Nigerian government to release all detained sect members to give room for dialogue and lasting peace. Some Kano residents welcomed the announcement, while others say they do not trust it.

The Nigerian military said it needed a one month's peace guarantee before it takes the ceasefire seriously.

[ This report does not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations. ]

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  • ookoroafor
    Feb 12 2013, 23:57

    It is impossible for anyone to believe that Boko Haram's leaders are declaring a cease-fire because of the effects it is having in the North. The leadership cannot be that ignorant of the fact that violence drives businesses away and ruins the economy. There is another reason why they stopped. The reasons are debatable. Some say it could be the threat of drone attacks, I believe it has something to do with the battle between Jonathan's technocrats and the old military guard. Possibly, Boko Haram's leaders believe that they may soon get federal government handouts like former MEND militants received. Whatever the reason, when you announce that you are fighting against 'Western culture' and bomb churches and government institutions and gun people down on the street, you are going to drive away people and business. Those who are Christians are often Igbos, Yorubas, and Niger-Delta ethnicities, and are entrepreneurial by nature (especially the Igbo); so they must have known that they were driving away and killing the chief job creators in the area. Also, the entrepreneurs had nothing to do with the corruption that has plundered all parts of Nigeria. Boko Haram has effectively screwed their fellow Muslims they say they were fighting for (as well as murdering them) and I believe the Boko Haram leadership knew somewhere in their gut that these things would take place.

  • ras sideeq
    Feb 13 2013, 16:01

    Nigeria is not a vassle state nor is itsmall entity in Africa. I am hoping that our brethren can truly recognise that it is not sustainable to destroy ones own house without realising its counterproductive!!!. As a Pan Africanist one who belives strongly in the religion of my forefathers which was monotheseism. I find it difficult to see that after our enslavement the many problems that black people had to endure much pain suffering under the hands of evil dictators barbarians ; that we can be so crule to oursleves infact making the havoc and hate that wasprojected unto us as human beings;;" the first to be true"!!!!!!.Watching in horror as we wreak havoc on our own brothers doing exactly what they did and even more. We contribute to their felonious arguments that we sold each other into slavery???? At a point during the slave tarde when there was just no way out when youths who new not that this was the right thing to od after centuries of slave trading the black man succumed to gain strength and power from the many rifles they brought to Africa. Nothing much has changed after gaining our so called independence we still find ways to defeat our own cause to serve te devil and his crusade!!!!!. There are many ignorant people in Africa many who have not had any opprtunities to examine the trtuh for themselves, this has also been exaserbated by corrupt politicians civilservanst ho are easily misled for wanting of a better life. This desire is nto wrong at a whole look but when it means that you must step on, cut the throats of your own brothers and sistersthen its unacceptable. These cutthroat ideologies implimented in Africa by Europeans who canme with this king of the jungle'winner take all'strongest of the strong fittest of the fit survives', these quotes and ways of life were all a counter force to destroy African Social Democratic principles that were practiced thru-out all Africa. Equity parity fairness justice honour integrity righteousness was the order of the continent!!!!. Africa was developed with many nations of brethren that belived in the principles of the the MOST HIGH GOD2;they followed what was taught to them since creation that all is equal as the first practitioners of mathematics and science as the first astrolegers architects agriculturalist we belived in the environment and the sanctity of life!!!!!!!.. These are facts that can not be idsputed those that came into africa replacing our culture with alien teachings all that was negative irresponsible dominering dictating fgacist policies that succeeeded in decmating our people our educational system launching us inot servitude backwardness for centuries!!!!!!!. This was brought to us a by a brabaric people who were lazy and needed to find people to do what they could not do for se;f!!!! Theymurdered with impunity they kidnapped raped mutilated molested our children tortured all our humanitythen hu, miliatingly leading us into slavery!!!. They then peceeded to rape plunder loot the continentthen agin ot satisfiewd they brought to us thier polygamous religion called christianity taking these scripts they found in Africa written by the original inhabbitants which were th black people of the continent; they then manufactured rewrote plagiarised what they knew not about, and forced upon our children after many torturous centuires this religion that amny of us belive so stronmgly in. Should we truly look at the trtuh if thiswas a pur ereligion they would not have had to torture murder kill to teach us the trtuh. This when we look at facts is the reaosn that they took Israel and Egypt out of Africa, they even changed geographic locations to make thier story plausible. they can not se into the future thier plans would eventually cometo and end where we are today??. they desperately divided the continent splitting our nations into many differnt groups causing animosity amongst orusleves in order for us to survive. In order to eat bread my brothers and sisters had ot be enmies I had to hate myslef to live!!!!!!!!! This si the way fo the Europeans the Americans this there type of culture what we se our sleves living in today!!!!. It is imperative that we dislodge ourlves from this barabic attitude of slef hate which si waht we are manifesting with the thinsg we do.Hating oruselves is how they keep command over opur continent they give us guns they manufacture they give us tear gas they manufacture they give us hate to keep feeding to our people. We wake up everyday with steady diest of hate more hate dysfunctionality disunity misoverstanding as we seem to understand too much!!!. We stay underdeveloped undereducated under studies, we have not seemd to e lead palyers in our ownership of slef and continent. We still have to get aid we still have to ask permision to free ourslves form a mess of dudud that was left by these same Europeans who think they know all??!!!!!!. We do not live in a black world where the language and ideas are based on our past traditions; instead we live in a corrupt world of bribes lies hypocrisy double standards tyranny authoritarianisms dictatoships facismm. This not the culture that belonged to the black man history has taught us that when the black man ruled the planet there was uninteruppted peace tranquility for millionss of years. Africa was the head quarters of the planetthis where everyone came to learn of the many lessons that were lost with time and misfortune but one thing is sure the African never ever forgot his brothers from around the planet !!. There was always expeditions from Africa to every corner of the planet bringing the good news gifts instructions that wer lost on how to live within the parimeters fo the Montheseist principles that ws knwon around the globe!!. europe suffred and they were the last to become reducated which was taken up by the Moors who educated the Europeans gave them culture musice science architecture civilization" their rsponse was the Inquisitions they held thruout Europe then deporting all people of coloutr thier extended families and theose that were convinced that Monotheseism was the right practice; all was returned to Africa. They then again came at us with barbarity using the newly devoted white Arabic speakers converts to but not truly so ; to craete chaos as we see in Mali today; history rep[eating itslef!!!. These culpirts alklied themselves with Europe to overthrow African kings and cultures they embarked upon the most heinous war crimes and inhuamne parctices to ever embrace the earth!!! Chattel slavery, transAtlantic slave trading began every single black person on the planet was ear marked for slavery. This was no reason that many broown and original ARbic nations divorced themselves in order not to become slaves of these evil satanist""",, these whites conspirted longised thier European brothers to manufacture the religions fo that came out of Africa taking them unto themselvesas the masters and tellers fo truth???? This was nothing more than what they do best steal lie fraud trick defame ; plagiarism comes to mind. They began to take credit for evrything and anything they used propoganda which has beena big tool of these people ith each and every invention they interacted with this technolgies to spread the gospel fo satanism. Dispelling lies rumours inadequacies tales of fiction all geared at the black man all to destroy his credibility dishonour his name steal hsi inmherritance??? They wer nto smart thy might have been clevr but far from wize??? Our Lord the ALMIGHTY GOD" SEER KNOWER CREATOR BENIFACTOR OF ALL LIFE" Left the dor open for us his children to know oursleves and know the truth, with all the tales of these liars all the disrepect keeping us ignorant telling su what they wanted to tell us lying to us murdering our children raping molesting our women and children, after convincing us that yes you desreve this treament you were bron to be slaves?????? We have learned from hsitory that these were fables of a wicked people, they even bastardised a name which they used with derogatory spiteful hateful meaning calling us NIGGER . Shoudl we realise that they the ignorant took no differnce between ponounciation regretably took the owrd NGRO (NAGYGROH) which in Portugese Spanish means black. They then called us Negroes which became the defamatory infalmatory disrespectful undeniably derogatory nigger!!!!. Today we have seen how the word with all its connotation is used with abandon by blacks whose records sell around the globe they are seen as no threat to whites they are indoctrinated and they will even make them mega stars when they can convince them how much they dispse the,mselves and they will continue to mentally abuse brainwash and dominate the black man. Stars are born in te US when they kill murder and degrade thier brothers and siters most of all themselves calling themselves spomehing that was so spiteful demeaninglowest of the low. When we see pictures comming out of hollywood showing the black man being abused by whites and black mantaking pride in abusing his self its really not a wonderful sight!!!. This goes hand in hand with the guns ad drugs the committment they the Europeans has in undermining the black man giving them alcohol drugs guns religion and even undermining them with brain washing. when we can accept that we are niggers callinge ach other this pathetic hate word as if to say "yess master we accept what you have dne to us we accept that you are our superirors , we are nothing"... This is what we see when we look at how they go into congres make laws for Africa because they have an assimilated people who they see as inferior !!!. They allow them to make music that is destructive divisive and even demeaning to our black queens!!!!!!. Prisons arte being modernised and made for blacks a new conditioning of the same old slave trade,w ith a new dymension. In Africa they tried desperately to assim,ilate the continent with sodomy drugs guns but what they gor was more miltancy for a more rgerous righteouss way of life... I am not by any means ocnconing jihadisisms. they have p[ieces of the puzzle that is not being taught to them. They are embarking upona destructive path which is how the Europeans do thier thing?? Look at MALi Libya COte d' Ivoire, these palces were bombed an are still being bombed by whites displacing Africans . Creating chorganised chaos deliberately displacing and we are cheerimg for them???? It is time to look at past look at present and look at the future. OPUR CREATOR WIZE IN ALLWAYS; saw waht is being transpired to day what he has doen with all we have been trhough has left to us agenerously , wealth that is unimaginable . When they refer to the chosen people who do you see when we look at Africa we do not see ourslves we want to belive thier lies that the zionist the genociders the former nazis who chanmged thier identity and name are the ALLMIGHTY GOD'S CHOSNE CHILDREN??? Do not be riddiculous how coudl murderers liars torturesr evil entities be regarded as children of "OUR LOD" has the African really become that blind as to not see where this is going and whre its comming from????, What they have doen was clever they divided the cpontinent took parts of it redefined its destiny and embarked upon adn race scheme to lighetn the continents complextionso that we would nto knwo ourselves!!!!!! What has kept us in touch with the truth is ISLAM funny neough as it seems. This ahs been the religion that wws left by our forfatehrs to remind us of our duties to OUR CREATOR n the duties we have to humanity!! This is an unselfich selfless dignified noble righteouss honourable cause to all humanity"!!!!! these are the ral duties of a muslim!!!!Many are being decived and are being lessoned by those that asumed control over vast tracts of lands evn given countries to be named in thier honour!!! They have rewritten all the books again using technologies in thier favour to decive lie spread rumours underminetelling us constantly we are lesser than they are we are stuipid backwarsd people that without them we are lost. Even today we hear whites looking at Africa thru dark colourted glasses teling us " it will take decades before AFRIC can beopn its own"".... These are falacies because they do not want to break the link in the chain' they want to keep us UNDER in every connotation of the word!!!!!!!!!!!. This si why I need you to OVER in every sense of the word!!. TOday is no tiem to think white or emuklate white or you will reap the same benifits that they are now recieving they can lie to you ad tell you they are commming out th hole but they are rushing to AFRICA in the guise of training troops for years to coem??? They were in AFRICA for centuries and we must belive they are readuy to start nation building??? when evertyhing they do is destructive!!! We asa people must wake up if we are to inherit what has been provided for us!!!!!DEPENDANCE MUST STOP MURDERING AD SHOOTING BOMBING OUR COUNTRY MAN IS WORKING OFR THE SAME COLNIALIST WHO TOLD YOU WERE WORTHLESS, WHO IS NOW LOOKING AT AFRICA WITH GREEDY EYES!!!!!THEY ARE BECOMMING MORE DESPERATE THEY DO NOT HAVE WHAT WE HAVE AND THEY ARE DOING THE SAME THING THEY DID FIVE CENTUIRES AGO. THEY ARE WHAT WE CALL SERIAL OFRFENDERS!!!. PATHOLOGICAL MANIACIAL PSYCOPATTHS WHO ONLY DESIRE LUST GREED DISREPUTABLE UNWORTHY IGNOBLE SATANIST. I CAN NOT SEE WHO AFRICA IS ALLOWING THESE US ASOLDIERS TO COME INTO AFRICA WHEN THEY ARE SPREADING HOPMOSEXUALISMS THEY ARE SANCTIFYING SAME SEX SOLDIERS TO BE MARRIED. THSI SI WHAT YOU WANT TO BRING TO AFRICA??? AFTER RESISTING THIS NASTINESS FOR SO LONG THEY ARE BRINGING IT IN VBIA THE BACK DOR !!! WHEN ARE WE GOING TO WAKE UP??? THIS NASTINESS SHOULD NOT BE ABLE TO CREEP INOT THE CONTINENT THIS IS WHAT THEY OD IN THE US THEY DESTROY THE YOUTHS BY LOCKING THEM AWAY IN PRISON TAKING THIER LIVES AWAY FROM THE,; THOSE THAT DO NOT GO TO PRISON HAVE TO BECOME HOMOSEXUALS SO THEY LESSON THE POPULATION OF BLACKS .. WE EITHR DIE BY DISEASE GUN SHOTS ABORTIONS AS THEY ARE NOW BRINGING IN FAMILY PLANJNING WE ARE NOT IN CHINA NOR DO WE AHVE THERIGHT TO DECIDE WHO MANY CHILDRE WWE SHOUDL AHVE IF WE ARE BLESSED WITH ONE HUNDRD CHILDREN WE ARE LIVING ON A CONTINENT OF PLENTY THEY WILL NTO STARVE. THESE CONDITIONING IS PART OF THE ASSI,MILATION THAT THEY USE TO SEE WHO MUCH THEY CAN USE YOU!!!!!!!!!!!. HOMOSEXUALITY IS SOMETHING AFRICASN REBUFF YET THEY ARE ASKING THESE EUROPEANDS ANDAMERICASN TO SET UP BASES IN AFICA ONCE AGAIN WE ARE NOW ASKING TO EB ENSLAVED ARE YOU PEOPLE THAT SILLY???? ITS Time WOKE UP PROPERLY. SIT DOWN WITHT TAUREGS AND START TO REBUILD MALI YOU DO NOT NEED THE OLD SLAVER TO DEPLOY TROOPS wTH STEALTH AND SAY THEY ARE REBUILDIG WHILE THEY BOMB MERICLESLY IN THE NORTH DESTROYING THE HOMES OF BALCK PEOPLE THAT KNOW NOPTHING OF TERRORISTY. THE TERRORIST HAVE FLED ALONG TIME AGO. THOSE THAT ARE FIGHTING ARE BEING PAID BY FARNCE TO ATTACK THE MALAIN ARMY. THERE IS CONFUSION IN MALI AT THE MOMENT. MALI IS BIGGER THAN THE ENTIRE USA And much much bigger than france they are using thier brain in africa again!!!!!!. thgere must be atruce i nigeria we need to settle the continent and get these false builderts enslavers out of our beloved continent. These French guys violated the resolution of the UN and made it look Aricans are to blame!!! SEE THY ARE USING THIER BRAINS AGAIN THEY NOW HAVE 16 DIFFERNT EUROPEAN COUNTRIES RUNNING TO MALI. WHY DONT THEY GO TO LIBYA AD SORT IT OUT THY MADE THE MESS THERE??? THEY ARE AFRAID OF THE TERRORIST THEY TRAINED IN LIBAY AND THEY WOULD NTO HAVE THE PLAYERS ON THE GROOUND IN SYRIA!!!. WE NED TO STOP THE CONFLICTS IN AFRICA DN SHOW THES EWHITES THAT THEY ARE WRONG / WJAT THEY ARE DOINGMALI IS EXACTLY WHAT THEY SAID THE TERRORIST ARE DOING THEY PAID TH VERY TERRORIST TO COME INTO MALI THE TAUREGS WERE AT WAR WITH THE TERORIST THEY TRAINED IN LIBYA. THEY INAVDED THE PLACE ON BEHGALF OF FRANCE SO THAT THEY COULD SET UP SHOP IN AFRICA. THIS HAS BEEN ONGOING SINCE THEY DESTROYED LIBYAS STRUCTURE AND THE FFREE THINKING AND OWNERSHIP OF AFRICA. WE HAVE TOO MANY WANNABEES WHO ARE RUNNING TO BEOCME PARTNERS WITH THE WEST. WHAT THEY DONT KNOW IS THE WEST AINT LOOKLING FOR PARTNERS TYHEY ARE LOOOKING FOR CONQUEST !!! THEY WANT TO COCUPY DOMINATE ATKE OVER THIS HTIER GAME!!! S ANY BALCK MAN THINKS HEDOING THE RIGHT THING FIGHTING TERRROISM IS FIGHTING HIMSELF.. THE WET ARE TE TERRORIST THEY ARE DROPPING BOMBS DESTROYING AND SIPLACINGT MILLIONS OF PEOPLE AINT NO TERRORIST IN AFRICA DOING ANY OF THAT!!!!!!. THEY ARE CREEPING INTO AFRICA WITH BOUGHT TERRROSIT FROM PEOPLE FROM LATIN AMERICA WHOLOOKS LIKE JIHADIST BUT ATRE ACTUALLY BLACK WATER CIA INSURGENTS BOUGHT AND PAID FOR BY THE QATARIS. I WOULD NOTE SURPRISE IF THE SO CALLE TERRROIST THAT DAREDWAS NOT A WSTERN PLAN TO GET BOOTS ONTHE GROUND IN AFRICA. THEY MANIPULATED THE LIBYAN CRISIS THEY UNDERMINED GADAFFI MURDERING HIM SO DO NOT PUT THIS PAST THEM!!!.. THESE PEOPLE ARE COLLUDERS CONSIPRERS TORTUERES MURDERES ENSLAVERS WHO DO YOU THINK THEY ARE??? THESE ARE NTO NATION BUILDERS THEY DO NTO SHARE THIER TECHNOLOGY THEY SHARE NOTHING WITH YOU EXCEPT TOEXTORT YOU!"!!! YOU ARE NOT IER FREINDS HVE THIER SELECTGROUP THE ZIONIST GENOCIDER WHO ARE WELL EQUIP WELL ARMED WITH NUCLEAR MATERAL THEY ARE THE MOST DANGEROUS TO ALL AFRICA THE REGION. THEY HAVE THE SAUDIS WHOM THEY OWN AS WQELL AS THE GULF STATES LIKE QATAR WHO HAS BIG CIA BASES IN QATAR THAT THIS WEHRE THEY SATY AND PLOT ALL OVER AFRICA. THEY ARE SET UP BASES IN WEST AND NORTH AFRICA. THEY ARE USNG STEALTH TO GET IN EAST AFRICA USING DIVISION STEALTH TO TAKEOVR COUNTRIES WITH ETS AND NUCLAR TIPPED BOMS ETCETERA DO I NEED TO GO ON????THE AGENDA IS HEGEMONY NO FREINDSHIP!!!!THEY WANT CONMTROL IN AFRICA TO KEEP AFRICA UNBALANCED WELL DIVIDED THEY KEEP[ MONEY PASSING AROUND WITH FOOLS WHO DO NTOREALISE THEY HVE PLATINUM GODL URANIUM NICKE IRON ORE RARE EARTH AN SO ON THEY WONT BRING THE AFRICAN UNION INTO STRONG CONGLOMERATE ON RESOURCE UNION"". THE BOKO HARAM NEEDS TO LOOK AT AFRICA AS HOWM AND BRING THEMSELES INTO THE STRUGGLE AGAINST OCCUPATION AS WE WILLSEE IN MAKI AND OTHERT WEST AFRICAN STATES WHO DO NOT OVER STAND PAN AFRICANISM !!!!!!! PEACE TO ALL BOKO HARAM STAY UNITED WITH NIGERIA WE NEED A STRONG RESOLOUTE AFRICA UNDIVIDED AS OUR CREATOR IS"!!!!!!!!!!