The Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria, HURIWA, has called for urgent action against kidnapping following a report that 7,825 Nigerians were abducted and N7.8bn was paid in ransom within one year.
HURIWA made the call in a statement signed by its National Coordinator, Comrade Emmanuel Nnadozie Onwubiko, on Friday.
The group was reacting to a report by SBM Intelligence titled The Capture of the Kidnap Economy. The report said 1,713 kidnapping and related incidents were recorded between July 2025 and June 2026.
According to the report, 7,825 people were abducted while 1,142 people were killed during the period.
HURIWA described the figures as alarming and said they showed the need for stronger action by the Federal and state governments to protect citizens.
The group urged President Bola Tinubu and the National Assembly to strengthen laws and security measures against kidnapping and terrorism.
It also called for better use of technology, including drones, satellite surveillance and digital forensics, to track kidnappers and identify their hideouts.
HURIWA further urged security and financial intelligence agencies to trace ransom payments and investigate the financial networks supporting kidnapping.
The organisation called on the National Security Adviser to improve intelligence sharing among the military, police, Department of State Services and other security agencies.
It also urged the Federal and state governments to properly train and equip forest guards to support security agencies in securing forests and other areas used as hideouts by criminal groups.
HURIWA called for stronger protection of schools, rural communities and major transport routes, as well as improved community-based intelligence systems.
The organisation also expressed concern about the reintegration of people described as repentant terrorists. It said anyone convicted of terrorism-related offences should be subjected to proper judicial and security assessments before any reintegration process.
HURIWA said the reported scale of kidnapping and ransom payments should be treated as a national emergency.
It urged the Federal Government, state governments and security agencies to move from reacting to attacks to preventing them through stronger intelligence, surveillance, law enforcement
