The governor of Kaduna state, Uba Sani, has made multiple claims regarding the rate of poor people in the Northwestern region of Nigeria and the proliferation of illegal firearms in the country.
The governor, who is a former chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, made the assertions during a recent exclusive interview with TVC News.
While speaking on the need for good governance as a means of tackling insecurity, Sani said, “As we are speaking, 80-85 percent of people that live in the Northwest are living below the poverty line. That is the level of poverty there, and that can only change if we have good governance.”
Claim I: 80-85% percent of people living in the North West region are living below the poverty line
Verification
The North West is recognized as the largest geo-political zone in Nigeria, encompassing seven states which are Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi, Jigawa, Sokoto, and Zamfara. According to the 2006 Census, the population of the North West was quoted to be 35,786,944, constituting 25.56% of the country’s population.
In a 2023 report by the African Development Bank, the North West population was estimated at 60 million, representing 28% of the country’s population. Similarly, Premium Times reported in November 2023 that the North West was ranked as the poorest sub-region in the country with 45.5 million poor residents.
These statistics show that the rate of poor people living in the North West falls below the 80-85% range. With an estimated population of 60 million, 80-85% of the population would mean that between 48 and 51 million people living in the zone are poor. However, recent data show that the sub-region has 45.5 million poor residents, representing 75.8 percent of the estimated population.
Verdict: INACCURATE
Claim II: More than 70% of the 350 million illegal arms in circulation in West Africa, are in Nigeria
While speaking on the spate of insecurity in the country, the Kaduna state governor expressed concern about giving money to armed bandits in a bid to negotiate with them. He argued that the unscrupulous elements end up using the money paid to them for the purchase of more firearms.
Sani said, “There was an alarming report by the United Nations that about 350 million arms are in circulation in Sub-saharan Africa, West African region precisely. More than 70% of the arms are in circulation in Nigeria.”
Verification
In 2016, the United Nations Regional Centre for Peace and Disarmament in Africa (UNREC) raised alarm regarding the illicit proliferation of Small Arms and Light Weapons (SALW) in Nigeria. According to a report by the Vanguard, UNREC revealed that Nigeria accounted for over 350 million or 70 per cent of the estimated 500 million weapons circulating in West Africa.
A co-sponsor of a bill to regulate SALW in Nigeria, Nnenna Ukeje, quoted the statistics on the floor of the Federal House of Representatives in 2018.
Ujeke stated that 70% of over 500 million small arms and light weapons circulating in West Africa were in Nigeria, Daily Trust reported.
In 2021, while serving as a lawmaker representing Kaduna Central and as the sponsor of the Firearms Amendment Bill, Uba Sani reiterated the same statistics on the floor of the Senate, stating that 350 million out of the 500 million illegal weapons circulating in West Africa were domiciled in Nigeria.
Furthermore, A 2021 report by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) stated that over 70 percent of about 10 million illegal weapons in West Africa were in Nigeria.
Verdict: MISLEADING
The UN statistics cited by Uba Sani actually indicated that Nigeria harboured over 350 million or 70% of an estimated 500 million illegal weapons circulating in West Africa.
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