Opposition, CSOs Slam FG as Nigeria Ranks 4th in Global Terrorism Index

Opposition parties and civil society organisations have criticised the Federal Government following Nigeria’s poor ranking in the 2026 Global Terrorism Index (GTI), which also recorded a sharp rise in killings across the country.

According to the report released by the Institute for Economics and Peace (IEP), Nigeria is now the fourth most terrorism-affected country in the world, moving up two places from its 2024 position. The country also witnessed its deadliest year since 2020, with terrorism-related deaths rising by 46 per cent to 750 in 2025.

This comes despite a massive N6.57 trillion allocation to security and defence in the 2025 budget—one of the highest in Nigeria’s history.

Pakistan, Burkina Faso and Niger ranked first, second and third respectively, while Nigeria stood out as one of the few countries where both terrorist incidents and deaths increased, even as global terrorism fatalities dropped by 28 per cent.

The report identified Boko Haram and the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) as the main drivers of attacks in Nigeria, responsible for about 80 per cent of terrorism-related deaths. Civilians remained the primary targets, accounting for 67 per cent of attacks, while military personnel made up 19 per cent.

Violence remains widespread in the North-East, North-West and North-Central regions, with Borno State accounting for over two-thirds of all attacks and deaths. A newer group, Lakurawa, also emerged, carrying out 10 attacks and killing 74 people in 2025.

Reacting to the resurgence, the Sultan of Sokoto, Muhammadu Sa’ad Abubakar, called for a more aggressive military strategy, urging security forces to take the fight directly to terrorist strongholds instead of reacting after attacks occur. He also stressed the need for national unity and reiterated that terrorism has no basis in Islam.

Meanwhile, opposition figures blamed the worsening insecurity on government failure. The African Democratic Congress (ADC) accused the administration of prioritising politics over national safety, while the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) criticised what it described as a pattern of reactive responses to attacks.

Former presidential candidate Peter Obi described the report as a “painful indictment of failed leadership,” warning that Nigeria is moving in the opposite direction from global trends.

Security experts linked the crisis to deeper structural issues, including poverty, weak governance and poor implementation of counter-terrorism strategies. They stressed that military action alone is insufficient and called for a broader, society-wide approach to tackling insecurity.

In a related development, a separate report by Transparency International highlighted serious corruption risks within Nigeria’s defence sector. The 2025 Government Defence Integrity Index rated the country as facing a “very high” risk of corruption, citing weak oversight, opaque spending and poor accountability systems.

The report warned that these systemic issues are undermining the effectiveness of security operations and eroding public trust, despite increased funding. It called for urgent reforms to improve transparency, strengthen oversight and embed anti-corruption measures within defence institutions.

As insecurity persists across multiple regions, stakeholders continue to urge the government to adopt more decisive, transparent and coordinated strategies to address the growing threat.