More than ten years after Boko Haram kidnapped 276 schoolgirls from Chibok Secondary School in Borno State, at least 91 remain missing or in captivity, according to a new UN report.
The findings, released by the UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), paint a grim picture of Nigeria’s handling of mass abductions.
The committee accused the government of failing to protect schoolgirls from repeated kidnappings and of abandoning many survivors to face stigma, trauma, and inadequate support.
CEDAW said its inquiry followed a two-week confidential mission to Nigeria in December 2023.
Delegates visited Abuja, Adamawa, Borno, Enugu, and Kaduna States.
They also inspected camps for internally displaced persons and interviewed women abducted by Boko Haram and other armed groups.
“The committee finds grave and systematic violations persist after the Chibok mass abduction of schoolgirls,” the report stated.
It added that Nigeria bore responsibility for the repeated failure to secure schools and protect girls from targeted attacks.
Of the original 276 Chibok victims, 82 escaped on their own while 103 were freed between 2016 and 2017 through prisoner swaps. Yet, the whereabouts of 91 remain uncertain.
The report also noted that at least 1,400 students across northern Nigeria have been abducted since 2014, many for ransom or forced marriage.
Nahla Haidar, Chair of the Committee, stressed that Chibok was not an isolated tragedy but the start of a decade-long wave of school abductions.
“These girls were failed twice,” she said.
“First when they were kidnapped, and again when many were left without care or rehabilitation after escaping.”
The report detailed horrific conditions in captivity. Survivors described beatings, forced conversions, sexual slavery, and being married off to fighters. Others gave birth while in detention.
Women abducted for ransom by different armed groups also faced repeated sexual violence.
CEDAW accused the Nigerian state of failing to criminalise abduction and marital rape in all 36 states. It also said that survivors continue to face heavy stigma, making reintegration nearly impossible.
Many who escaped cannot return to their villages, while those freed through negotiations struggle despite receiving training and scholarships.
The report concluded that Nigerian authorities had failed to prevent attacks, protect survivors, or restore their right to education.
It urged urgent reforms to strengthen school safety, criminalise abductions nationwide, and provide lasting rehabilitation for survivors and their children.
For now, the fate of the 91 missing Chibok girls remains unknown, deepening the scars of one of Nigeria’s darkest tragedies.
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