The report, ‘Journey to Extremism in Africa: Pathways to Recruitment and Disengagement’, released on 7 February by the United Nations Development Programme, draws from interviews with nearly 2,200 people in eight countries: Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Somalia and Sudan.

More than 1,000 interviewees are former members of violent extremist groups, both voluntary and forced recruits. Consisting of more than 2,000 interviewees, nearly 25% of voluntary recruits cited ‘employment opportunities’ as the reason for joining the groups.

“Research shows that those who decide to disengage from violent extremism are less likely to re-join and recruit others,” UNDP Preventing Violent Extremism technical lead in Africa Nirina Kiplagat said.

Some 55% of voluntary recruits express moderate to severe frustration at their economic conditions, and 40% said there were in urgent need of livelihoods at the time of recruitment.

“This is why it’s so important to invest in incentives that enable disengagement. Local communities play a pivotal role in supporting sustainable pathways out of violent extremism, along with national governments amnesty programmes.”

Education is a big driver too, while 39% of voluntary recruits have just five to 10 years learning and 16% have only two years or fewer.

To counter and prevent violent extremism, the report recommends greater investment in basic services including child welfare; education; quality livelihoods; and investing in young men and women. 

It also calls for scaling-up exit opportunities and investment in rehabilitation and community-based reintegration services.

António Guterres, UN Secretary General, commented that a new social framework will allow “people to live in dignity” and to ensure the women “have the same prospects” as others.

“People want social and economic systems that work for everyone. They want their human rights and fundamental freedoms to be respected,” he said. “They want a say in decisions that affect their lives.”

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