By Damilola Adeleke

In a startling revelation, data indicates that Nigerians paid approximately ₦2.23 trillion in ransoms between January and November 2024, underscoring the alarming rise of kidnapping as a lucrative criminal enterprise in the country.

This alarming statistics revealed that kidnapping, as a criminal enterprise, has assumed a worrying dimension in the country.

President Bola Tinubu recently presented the 2025 national budget, proposing an unprecedented expenditure of ₦47.96 trillion. The ransom payments, totaling ₦2.23 trillion, constitute about 4.65% of this proposed budget.

Breaking down the figures regionally, the North West bore the highest burden, with ₦1.17 trillion paid in ransoms. This was followed by the North Central at ₦469.74 billion, and the South West at ₦238.78 billion.

The North East, South South, and South East regions reported ransom payments of ₦166.14 billion, ₦90.05 billion, and ₦85.44 billion, respectively.Collectively, Northern Nigeria accounted for ₦1.81 trillion, while Southern Nigeria paid ₦424.27 billion.

A significant portion of these payments originated from rural areas, totaling ₦1.44 trillion, compared to urban areas, which accounted for ₦794.46 billion.These staggering figures highlight the pervasive threat of kidnapping across the nation, affecting both urban and rural communities.The substantial financial impact, equating to nearly 5% of the national budget, emphasizes the urgent need for comprehensive security measures to combat this growing menace and safeguard the lives and livelihoods of Nigerian citizens.