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FG to Create Database for Missing Nigerians

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By Okunloye Abiodun

Database would be created for over 25,000 missing Nigerians to keep records.

The Nigerian government has affirmed that it is working on creating a database to record information about citizens who have gone missing as a result of instances such as armed conflict and other forms of national security threats. Because families of the missing persons have persisted in seeking answers from the government concerning the whereabouts of their loved ones. This information was disclosed at a meeting of stakeholders in charge of the collation of missing persons in Nigeria organized by the Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Social Development in partnership with the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), Disaster Management, and National Human Rights Commission (NHRC).

Communicating the government plans to identify such people within the country, Mrs. Ifeoma Nwakama, the Director of the Human Rights Institute who was representing Tony Ojukwu, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) Executive Secretary, said that they are searching inward and at the NHRC, and that they have consistently played an important role in this matter because when someone talks concerning missing persons, there are humanitarian and human rights issues, and there is also some overlap between.

Cases of missing persons have increased, and it requires a database.

Even before the problem of missing persons surfaced in Nigeria, she added, the NHRC had received instances or complaints of people who had gone missing while in the detention of state agents like the military, the police, and others. This is called enforced disappearance, and the NHRC has always dealt with it in accordance with human rights standards. Conflicts and other problems started to evolve more frequently as time went on. When discussing current events, it is no longer limited to the Northeast. It is taking place all around the nation now.

She remarked that among the issues it raises is the dilemma of displacement, the problem of family separation, and the problem of individuals unaccounted for and that no responsible administration would ignore this problem. Because of this, everyone there representing whatever agency has reason to be concerned. She is hopeful that they will soon realize the agencies and responsibilities they can play in making this a reality, to the point where Nigeria will have a comprehensive database and citizens can confidently report the number of missing persons within a given time frame.

People illegally migrating also contributes to the issue.

Similarly, Hajiya Sadiya Farouk, Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management, and Social Development, said that many Nigerians, which include children, risk their lives each year by migrating illegally over the border, the Mediterranean Sea and the Sahara Desert in quest of stability and a better way of life. Nasir Sani Gwarzo, the ministry’s permanent secretary, who spoke on Farouk’s behalf, said that the current figures show that among the 64,000 missing people throughout Africa, Nigeria is taking over 25,000 missing persons, with around 14,000 children.

No official registry exists for missing people in Nigeria. Hence there has yet to be any credible national data available. The humanitarian fallout from disappearances needs to be dealt with since no national framework or standard operating procedure (SOP) exists. As a result, it is obvious why the government and the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management, and Social Development are working to address this devastating but frequently overlooked social and humanitarian problem. Representatives from the Nigerian Immigration Service, Nigeria Correctional Services, Nigeria Security and Civil Defense Corps (NSCDC), Nigerian Navy and the Nigerian Police are among the stakeholders involved in missing person reports in Nigeria.

About 13,000 families in Nigeria are searching for the missing.

Furthermore, Yann Bonzon, head of the ICRC’s delegation in Nigeria, pointed out that people were grieving from not knowing what had become of their loved ones. He also stated that nearly 25,000 individuals had gone missing in the country and that this number is likely to increase over time. He said every missing person has a family, most of which are related to the conflict in the Northeast. The Nigerian Red Cross Society and the ICRC have recorded these instances. In light of this fact, about 13,000 households in Nigeria are searching for loved ones who have gone missing.


Related Link

NHRC: Website

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Ask Nigeria
Admin
1 year ago

FG to Create Database for Missing NigeriansDatabase would be created for over 25,000 missing Nigerians to keep records. – Express your point of view.

Abusi
Abusi
Member
1 year ago

This is actually very important. The database will actually hep us know the number of people that have gotten missing and we will be able to identify them if we see them.

theApr
theApr
Member
1 year ago

The NHRC had received reports of cases of people going missing while being held by state agents including the military, police, and others even before the issue of missing persons in Nigeria became a problem.

Iyanu12345ogg
Iyanu12345ogg
Member
1 year ago

Although, the decision seems late (25,000 missing) the affirmations by the gov’t to work on creating a database to record information about citizens who have gone missing to treated urgently!

Bola12
Bola12
Member
1 year ago

Before Nigeria’s missing persons issue, the NHRC had collected instances of individuals going missing being held by agents of the state like the soldiers, cops, and others.

Tolaniiii
Tolaniiii
Member
1 year ago

In all honesty, this is of the utmost significance. This information will actually assist us in counting the number of persons who have gone missing, and it will allow us to recognize them should we come across them in the future.

Ultra0711
Ultra0711
Member
1 year ago

Actually, this is quite significant. We can really identify missing persons if we see them thanks to the database, which also helps us keep track of how many people have gone missing.

Remi1
Remi1
Member
1 year ago

The Northeast is no longer the only region brought up while talking about current events. Now, it’s happening all over the country. The nation is no longer secure. And if the nation had a database of its population, missing people could be found with ease.

Christiana
Christiana
Member
1 year ago

Current events no longer just mention the Northeast. It’s nationwide. Nationwide insecurity exists. Missing persons could be found easily if the nation possessed a population database.

Nwachukwu Kingsley
Nwachukwu Kingsley
Member
1 year ago

The government of Nigeria has stated that it is now working on the creation of a database that will record information about citizens who have been reported missing as a result of various incidents.

Tonerol10
Tonerol10
Member
1 year ago

Database would be created for over 25,000 missing Nigerians to keep records. Other this should have been done long time ago. Government should always do the needful not on till something happened

Chibuzor
Chibuzor
Member
1 year ago

This information was presented at a gathering of stakeholders in Nigeria who are in charge of compiling a list of missing persons in the country.

Adesanyaj72
Adesanyaj72
Member
1 year ago

Families of those who have gone missing have been persistent in their efforts to obtain information from the authorities regarding the whereabouts of their loved ones.

Taiwoo
Taiwoo
Member
1 year ago

Providing information on the plans that the government has to locate people like these within the country,

Hassan Isa
Hassan Isa
Member
1 year ago

Since the topic of missing persons often involves humanitarian and human rights concerns, and since there is often overlap between these two spheres, they have continually played an important role in this problem.

Kazeem1
Kazeem1
Member
1 year ago

Within a specified amount of time, Nigeria will have an extensive database, and its residents would be able to confidently record the number of people who have gone missing.

Godsewill Ifeanyi
Godsewill Ifeanyi
Member
1 year ago

In Nigeria, there is no official registry for missing persons or missing persons cases. As a result, there is not currently any national statistics that can be considered credible.

jdpumping
Member
1 year ago

The feeling need to rally do this because is of utmost importance this will help in lacting missing persons of loved ones even after several years of such cases occuring,this will help keep the records for longer periods.

Haykaylyon26
Member
1 year ago

This is a good thing and important stuff to do to keep database of missing person even if someone is missing for a long time they data of the missing person should still be available for continuous search so if database is available they can easily identify the missing person

DimOla
DimOla
Member
1 year ago

Most advanced countries do have the database of every citizens and noncitizens that is resident in the country. These will enable them to give accurate figure of missing individuals. NIN by nimc was done to have database of every Nigerians but we are yet to get there. It will be okay if the federal government can create the database of the 25,000 missing persons.

SarahDiv
Member
1 year ago

A lot of Nigerians are missing. It will be great if the federal government will successfully create database for over 25,0000 missing Nigerians.