Nigeria’s Kidnap Ransom Payments Hit N7.78bn in One Year—Report

By Adedapo Adesanya

Nigerian kidnappers collected nearly N7.78 billion in ransom payments from civilian abductions between July 2025 and June 2026, while the number of kidnapping victims rose sharply, according to security consultancy SBM Intelligence.

SBM said 7,825 people were kidnapped during the period, representing a 66 per cent increase from the previous year. At least 1,142 people were killed, while confirmed ransom payments more than tripled to N7.78 billion, equivalent to about $5.79 million.

In its The Economics of Nigeria’s Kidnap Industry, 2026 report released on Thursday, the consultancy said the figures were compiled from media reports, interviews and publicly available information, adding that the actual value of ransom payments was likely higher because many cases were not publicly disclosed.

The data showed that the north accounted for 93.7 per cent of all abduction victims, with 7,334 of the 7,825 victims recorded in the region. Mass abduction has also emerged as the dominant method, accounting for 79.5 per cent of all victims.

Although the total ransom demanded fell by 52 per cent, from N48 billion to N22.9 billion, the collection rate more than tripled from 5.35 per cent to 34 per cent.

The data further showed thatJama’at Ahl al-Sunna li al-Da’wa wa al-Jihad (JAS), a faction of Boko Haram, collected N7 billion from eight incidents, significantly more than the N719 million collected by bandits from 146 incidents.

The terror group was estimated to have received the N7 billion,= largely from two mass kidnapping incidents in which more than 300 people were abducted in each case.

It also indicated that ransom payment does not guarantee victims’ survival, with at least six people reportedly killed after ransom had been paid.

Despite the higher ransom collections in the north east, SBM said the north west recorded more kidnapping incidents and victims.

The report highlighted the growing threat to schools, with 315 pupils and staff abducted from a school in Papiri, Niger State, in November.

SBM said the resurgence of school kidnappings was affecting education, farming and public confidence in government, warning that kidnapping had increasingly become a profitable criminal enterprise.

The report comes amid renewed security concerns following the abduction of as many as 600 civilians in Niger State last week, prompting President Bola Tinubu to order security forces to intensify efforts to rescue the victims.

Kidnapping for ransom has become a major component of Nigeria’s wider security crisis, with armed bandits and Islamist militants targeting schools, communities and major roads and holding victims until ransom payments are made.

SBM warned that without a coordinated strategy to reduce the profitability of kidnapping and address its underlying causes, the crime could become a sustained source of funding for groups threatening Nigeria’s stability.

The security situation is expected to feature prominently in Nigeria’s next general elections, as the government faces growing pressure to demonstrate tangible progress in tackling insecurity.