2.1.5. Nasarawa

Table of contents

2.1.5. Nasarawa

Nasarawa state is comprised of the following 13 LGAs: Akwanga, Awe, Doma, Karu, Keana, Keffi, Kokona, Lafia, Nasarawa, Nasarawa Egon, Obi, Toto, Wamba. The capital city is Lafia.463

The main ethnic groups include Gwandara, Alago, Eggon, Gbagi, Egbira, Migili, Kantana, Fulani, Hausa, Kanuri, Tiv, Afo, Gade, Nyankpa, Koro, Jukun, Mada, Ninzam, Buh, Basa, Agatu, Arum, Kulere, Igbo, Yoruba and Hausa.464

UNFPA and the US Census Bureau projected the population at 2 886 022 in 2022, based on figures from the 2006 census.465

a) Conflict dynamics and main actors

For a general overview on actors in Nigeria, please see section 1.1 Main Actors.

Nasarawa state was affected by farmer-herder violence in the reference period.466 Violence between suspected armed herders and farmers was reported, for example, in January,467 March,468 April469 and June 2025,470 and killings by bandits were reported in February,471 and March 2025.472 Communal clashes were reported in July 2024 in Keana LGA473 and in January 2025 in Nasarawa LGA.474

Kidnappings were reported in August 2024475 and in February,476 March,477 April,478 May479 and July 2025.480 In some cases ransom money was demanded.481

The killing of a student by a ‘yet-to-be identified gang’ was reported in July 2024.482 In September 2024, soldiers were accused of killing a student ‘over allegations of cultism’.483

In January 2024, ISWAP reportedly claimed an attack on a shop in Karu LGA, killing four Christians.484 Other media reports also mentioned the attack, but not that ISWAP claimed responsibility.485

b) Security incidents and impact on the population

In the period between 1 January 2024 and 31 August 2025, ACLED recorded 98 security incidents in Nasarawa state, which resulted in 165 fatalities. Of these security incidents, 32 were coded as battles, 9 as riots and 57 as incidents of violence against civilians.486

Imported image pandoc_image_7.png

Figure 9: Evolution of security events coded as battles, explosions/remote violence, riots, and violence against civilians in Nasarawa state, 1 January 2024 – 31 August 2025, based on ACLED data.487

Security incidents were recorded by ACLED in 12 LGAs of the state, with the highest numbers documented in Toto (18 incidents), Karu and Lafia LGAs (16 incidents each), LGAs, Nasarawa (12 incidents) and Keana LGAs (10 incidents). No incidents were recorded in one LGA (Doma). According to ACLED, unidentified armed groups and Fulani ethnic militias (coded as either ‘Actor1’ or ‘Actor2’) were involved in the majority of incidents coded as violence against civilians.488

According to an April 2025 article by Nigerian newspaper The Sun, out of 578 people killed by bandits, herders and criminal groups across the North-Central states, 104 were killed in Nasarawa between November 2024 and April 2025.489

In July 2024, two Tiv farmers were killed in attacks over a land dispute between Tiv and Alago farming communities in Keana LGA.490 In January 2025, seven people were killed in a communal clash between two Afo tribes in Udege, Nasarawa LGA.491 In February 2025, bandits killed the son of a pastor and abducted his wife in Nasarawa LGA.492 In March 2025, six people, including a pregnant women, were killed and many others wounded in clashes between farmers and herders in Nasarawa LGA.493

Conflict-related infrastructure damage - Destruction of property was reported in Nasarawa LGA in December 2024.494 In January 2025, further properties and farm produce were reportedly damaged in communal clashes in Nasarawa LGA.495 In March 2025, houses, shops, and vehicles were damaged during an attack in Nasarawa LGA,496 while farms and farm produce and motorcycles were damaged in attacks in June 2025.497

Road security - An attack by armed men on commuters along the Nasarawa-Keffi Road,498 and the abduction of students on Abuja-Nasarawa highway499 were reported during the reference period.

Displacement, movement and return - As of February 2025, IOM estimated the number of IDPs in Nasarawa state at 23 913,500 compared to 27 150 as of November 2024.501 IOM lists communal clashes (53 %) and insurgency (33 %) as the main reasons for displacement in the state.502

In April 2025, Mdzou U Tiv, an association of the Tiv people, claimed that people were displaced after attacks by suspected herders in April503 and June504 2025. An official of the State Emergency Management Agency (NSEMA) stated in June 2025 that the IDP camp at the Kadarko school in Keana LGA was ‘already overwhelmed’ by an influx of displaced victims from the June 2025 attack in Yelewata in Benue state.505

No information could be found on returns in Nasarawa state during the reference period.

c) State response in maintaining law and order

In April 2024, the state government reportedly banned all ethnic-based vigilante groups within the state's 13 LGAs and ordered them to hand over uniforms and weapons to the police.506 The Fulani association Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore Fulani had previously launched a vigilante group507 to fight banditry, kidnapping and cattle rustling.508 In December 2024, local lawmakers called on security agencies to deploy staff to Mararaba Udege in Nasarawa LGA to address violence.509 In May 2025, the state government deployed security forces to border communities in response to attacks in Benue State,510 and in June 2025, the state government reportedly planned to establish security surveillance bases in cooperation with security forces.511 Media reported the rescue of victims of kidnapping,512 the arrest of suspected kidnappers,513 and the foiling of kidnappings by security forces,514 and in July 2025, the arrest of a suspected cultist by police.515

  • 463

    Nigeria, Government of Nasarawa State, About Nasarawa State, n.d., url

  • 464

    Nigeria, Government of Nasarawa State, About Nasarawa State, n.d., url

  • 465

    UNFPA and US Census Bureau, Nigeria – Subnational Population Statistics, 2022, modified 11 September 2024, url

  • 466

    International Crisis Group, Crisis Watch – Nigeria: January 2024 – August 2025, n.d., url

  • 467

    Daily Trust, 9 dead, many injured in Nasarawa attack, 13 January 2025, url

  • 468

    Daily Trust, Farmers-pastoralists’ clashes leave pregnant woman, 10 others dead in Nasarawa, 13 March 2025, url; Vanguard, Pregnant woman, 5 others dead, many wounded as farmer/herder clash in Nasarawa, 11 March 2025, url; Daily Post, Nasarawa communal clash: Police arrest two suspects in Farin Dutse, restore normalcy, 11 March 2025, url

  • 469

    Nigeria World, Herder allegedly kills two in Nasarawa over grazing dispute, 30 April 2025, url

  • 470

    Punch, Four killed, 3,000 displaced in renewed Nasarawa herder attacks, 24 June 2025, url

  • 471

    Daily Trust, Kidnappers kill pastor’s son, abduct wife near Abuja, 18 February 2025, url

  • 472

    Daily Trust, Bandits attack church camp in Nasarawa, kill 3 worshippers, 17 March 2025, url

  • 473

    Punch, Two Tiv farmers die in Nasarawa community land dispute, 25 July 2024, url

  • 474

    Guardian (The) Nigeria, Communal clash claims seven lives, properties destroyed in Nasarawa, 10 January 2025, url

  • 475

    Daily Trust, Abductors of 9 Nasarawa villagers demand N50m, 29 August 2024, url

  • 476

    Daily Trust, Kidnappers kill pastor’s son, abduct wife near Abuja, 18 February 2025, url

  • 477

    Daily Post, Police rescue two kidnapped university students in Nasarawa, 2 April 2025, url

  • 478

    Daily Trust, Gunmen kill husband, abduct wife days after wedding, 25 April 2025, url

  • 479

    Vanguard, Just in: Bandits invade palace, abduct traditional ruler in night attack in Nasarawa, 29 May 2025, url

  • 480

    Punch, Gunmen abduct Nasarawa Permanent Secretary at residence, 15 July 2025, url

  • 481

    Daily Trust, Gunmen kill 19-year-old after collecting N17m ransom in Nasarawa, 3 September 2024, url; Daily Trust, Abductors of 9 Nasarawa villagers demand N50m, 29 August 2024, url

  • 482

    Daily Trust, Gang kills final year Nasarawa Varsity law student, 27 July 2024, url

  • 483

    Daily Post, Soldiers reportedly beat Nasarawa Polytechnic student to death over alleged cultism, 14 September 2024, url

  • 484

    SpecialEurasia, ISWAP Media Campaign in January 2024: A Chronological Overview, 5 February 2024, url; ISW and CTP, Salafi-Jihadi Movement Weekly Update, Jan. 10: New IS Campaign Presents Pro-Palestine Propaganda Opportunities for Sub-Saharan Affiliates, 11 January 2024, url

  • 485

    TVN, Nasarawa CP orders probe into four people murdered in supermarket attack, 4 January 2024, url; Channels TV, Gunmen Attack Nasarawa Supermarket, Kill Four, 3 January 2024, url

  • 486

    EUAA analysis based on publicly available ACLED data. ACLED, Curated Data Files, Africa, data covering 1 January 2024 to 31 August 2025, as of 10 September 2025, url

  • 487

    EUAA analysis based on publicly available ACLED data. ACLED, Curated Data Files, Africa, data covering 1 January 2024 to 31 August 2025, as of 10 September 2025, url

  • 488

    EUAA analysis based on publicly available ACLED data. ACLED, Curated Data Files, Africa, data covering 1 January 2024 to 31 August 2025, as of 10 September 2025, url

  • 489

    Sun (The) Nigeria, Banditry: 578 massacred in North Central states in 6 months, 26 April 2025, url

  • 490

    Punch, Two Tiv farmers die in Nasarawa community land dispute, 25 July 2024, url

  • 491

    Guardian (The) Nigeria, Communal clash claims seven lives, properties destroyed in Nasarawa, 10 January 2025, url

  • 492

    Daily Trust, Kidnappers kill pastor’s son, abduct wife near Abuja, 18 February 2025, url

  • 493

    Vanguard, Pregnant woman, 5 others dead, many wounded as farmer/herder clash in Nasarawa, 11 March 2025, url

  • 494

    Guardian (The) Nigeria, Lawmakers seek Police, military deployment in Nasarawa over killings, 24 December 2024, url

  • 495

    Guardian (The) Nigeria, Communal clash claims seven lives, properties destroyed in Nasarawa, 10 January 2025, url; Sun (The), Seven dead, properties destroyed in Nasarawa communal clash, 10 January 2025, url

  • 496

    Vanguard, Pregnant woman, 5 others dead, many wounded as farmer/herder clash in Nasarawa, 11 March 2025, url

  • 497

    Vanguard, Four farmers killed, farms destroyed, scores displaced as herdsmen attack Nasarawa communities, 23 June 2025, url

  • 498

    Zagazola, Gunmen attack travellers on Nasarawa-Keffi Road, CCB staff missing, 23 June 2025, url

  • 499

    Punch, Poly students, 25 others abducted on Abuja-Nasarawa highway, 10 June 2024, url

  • 500

    As of 1 August 2025, UNHCR mentions the same IDP numbers. UNHCR, Nigeria – Forcibly Displaced Populations, 1 August 2025, url

  • 501

    IOM, Nigeria — North-Central and North-West — Round 16 IDP Atlas (February 2025), 18 March 2025, url, p. 6

  • 502

    IOM, Nigeria — North-Central and North-West — Round 16 IDP Atlas (February 2025), 18 March 2025, url, p. 10

  • 503

    PM News, Herder-Farmer crises: Tiv group says 10,000 people displaced in 4 days in Nasarawa, 30 April 2025, url

  • 504

    Vanguard, Four farmers killed, farms destroyed, scores displaced as herdsmen attack Nasarawa communities, 23 June 2025, url; Punch, Four killed, 3,000 displaced in renewed Nasarawa herder attacks, 24 June 2025, url

  • 505

    Leadership, Insecurity: Nasarawa Moves To Establish Surveillance Bases At Flashpoints, 19 June 2025, url

  • 506

    Daily Trust, Banditry: Nasarawa bans ethnic vigilante groups, 16 April 2024, url

  • 507

    Punch, 20 Nasarawa ethnic groups reject Miyetti Allah’s security outfit, 8 February 2024, url; Punch, Miyetti Allah unveils 1,144-man outfit to tackle Nasarawa bandits, 18 January 2024, url

  • 508

    Daily Trust, Banditry: Nasarawa bans ethnic vigilante groups, 16 April 2024, url

  • 509

    Daily Post, Lawmakers demand security beef-up in Nasarawa over escalating killings, 24 December 2024, url

  • 510

    Radio Nigeria: Nasarawa deploys security to border communities, 2 May 2025, url

  • 511

    Daily Post, Insecurity: Nasarawa Govt moves to establish surveillance bases, 18 June 2025, url

  • 512

    Daily Post, Police rescue two kidnapped university students in Nasarawa, 2 April 2025, url; Guardian (The) Nigeria, Police bust kidnapping gang, rescue victim in Nasarawa, 21 March 2025, url

  • 513

    PR Nigeria, Six Suspects Arrested for Kidnapping, Rape, Robbery in Nasarawa, 25 July 2025, url; Guardian (The) Nigeria, Police bust kidnapping gang, rescue victim in Nasarawa, 21 March 2025, url; Punch, Fake EFCC operatives arrested for robbery, kidnapping in Nasarawa, 2 May 2024, url

  • 514

    Daily Trust, Security agents foil kidnap attempt in Abuja border town, 22 October 2024, url

  • 515

    Nation (The), Nasarawa police arrest suspected cultist, recover firearm, 8 July 2025, url