Security Council - Counter-Terrorism Committee (CTC) - Boko Haram

CTED’s latest publication provides civil society perspectives on terrorism and counter-terrorism in West Africa

AKHVEDELID — Wed, 22 Apr 2026 12:04:00 +0000

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© atosan/Adobe Stock

The Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate (CTED) published a new report, “Civil Society Perspectives: Terrorism and Counter-Terrorism in West Africa,” focusing on the Lake Chad Basin and the Gulf of Guinea regions.

The report draws on findings from two virtual round-table discussions held in August 2025, convened by CTED as part of its ongoing commitment to whole-of-society approaches to counter-terrorism. More than 50 representatives of civil society organizations, Global Research Network partners, technical experts and practitioners participated across English- and French-language sessions.

Participants described a security environment that is worsening across the region, with groups such as Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), Jama’a Nusrat ul-Islam wa al-Muslimin (JNIM) and Boko Haram expanding their operations and exploiting weak governance, porous borders and socioeconomic grievances. A growing nexus between terrorism and organized crime – including arms smuggling, drugs trafficking, kidnapping for ransom, and illegal mining – was identified as a key driver of instability. Participants also flagged the growing use of unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) and social media by terrorist groups for surveillance, propaganda and recruitment.

Civil society participants highlighted a range of underlying factors, including youth unemployment, poverty, ethnic and religious discrimination, forced displacement, and environmental degradation.

The report underscores the critical but often underutilized role of local actors, including women leaders and community organizations, in prevention and resilience-building. Participants called for greater inclusion of civil society in the design and implementation of national and regional counter-terrorism strategies, and warned against over-securitized approaches that risk undermining human rights and eroding community trust. The report also includes lessons learned, good practices, and concrete recommendations from civil society participants to complement Member States’ responses in line with Security Council resolution 2810 (2025).

Between 2020-2025, CTED, on behalf of the Security Council’s Counter-Terrorism Committee, has conducted assessment visits to several Member States in Africa, including the following in West Africa: Benin, Cameroon, Chad, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Mauritania, and Nigeria.

To further highlight the threats of terrorism and counter-terrorism challenges in West Africa, CTED organized a technical meeting on West Africa for Member States in September 2025. The preliminary findings from this report were shared at the technical meeting. The central themes were the threat landscape in the region, evolving technology exploited by terrorist groups, the proliferation of propaganda on social media, socioeconomic drivers of instability, potentially increasing radicalization to violence in the region, and the lack of trust between communities and local government authorities.

Read the full report here.

Additional reports about Civil Society Perspectives:

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CTED participates in workshop to support the Lake Chad Basin countries

AKHVEDELID — Fri, 14 Dec 2018 18:40:00 +0000

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On 11-13 December 2018, representatives from Government agencies and civil society in Cameroon, as well as the African Union, the Multi-National Joint Task Force, and UN entities met in Yaoundé to discuss Cameroon’s strategy to screen and prosecute persons associated with Boko Haram. Part of a regional effort to help Lake Chad Basin countries (Cameroon, Chad, Niger, and Nigeria), the workshop sought to harmonize the way these States prosecute, rehabilitate, and reintegrate individuals associated with Boko Haram, in compliance with international requirements such as those stemming from the Security Council, as well as regional guidance provided by the Lake Chad Basin Commission’s Regional Stabilization Strategy.

Participants in the workshop in Yaoundé.
The Security Council Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate (CTED) conveyed the requirements regarding strategies for prosecution, rehabilitation, and reintegration outlined by the Security Council in its resolutions, in particular 2396 (2017). These resolutions support a comprehensive approach in terms of the handling of individuals associated with Boko Haram. An example of a principle adopted during the workshop is that screening (the step during which information is collected on a person to help find the most appropriate response) apply to all individuals who have been associated with Boko Haram, whether they surrendered or were captured.

The workshop was organized by CTED and the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) in partnership with the International Organization for Migration (IOM), the African Union, and the Multi-National Joint Task Force, and was funded by the Government of Japan.

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The European Union, UNODC, and CTED partner to support Nigeria to manage individuals associated with Boko Haram

BMUSONI — Wed, 21 Dec 2016 21:58:00 +0000

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How can a country effectively prosecute, rehabilitate, and reintegrate former terrorists? This is a challenge for several Member States of the United Nations. In the case of Nigeria, it is most pressing with respect to persons associated with Boko Haram – be they suspects, offenders, or individuals who have surrendered. In response to a request from the Nigerian Office of the National Security Advisor, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and the United Nations Security Council Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate (CTED), with funding from the European Union, held high-level and technical consultations on this theme in Abuja from 13 to 15 December 2016.

Bringing together experts from Member States that have faced similar challenges, the consultations included representatives of Algeria, Kenya, Sri Lanka, and South Africa who shared good practices and lessons learned. Also experts from international organizations participated. Nigerian officials, representing 31 entities including from the six most affected states, highlighted progress achieved and challenges remaining in implementing a criminal justice-based approach to the prosecution, rehabilitation, and reintegration of former members of Boko Haram.

As a result of these consultations, Nigeria identified the need to further clarify its goals for a successful criminal justice framework, including developing an effective prosecution strategy and robust criteria for pursuing alternative rehabilitation and reintegration approaches.

The consultations were part of an ongoing EU-Nigeria-UNODC-CTED partnership project funded by the European Union. Applying human rights-compliant criminal justice measures, the project aims to support Nigeria to bring terrorists to justice and to prevent further acts of terrorism. It focuses on strengthening the capacity of Nigerian criminal justice officials to effectively investigate, prosecute, and adjudicate terrorism cases, in accordance with the rule of law.

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S/PRST/2016/7 – Statement by the President of the Security Council on threats to international peace and security caused by terrorist acts

BMUSONI — Fri, 13 May 2016 16:03:00 +0000

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Joint Counter-Terrorism Committee/Executive Directorate visit to the Sahel reaffirms continued support for counter-terrorism efforts

BMUSONI — Fri, 13 Feb 2015 19:11:00 +0000

In order to reaffirm the Counter-Terrorism Committee’s continued support for counter-terrorism efforts of States of the Sahel region and to promote regional cooperation, the Chair of the Committee, H.E. Ambassador Raimonda Murmokaité, Permanent Representative of Lithuania to the United Nations, and the Executive Director of its Executive Directorate (CTED), Jean-Paul Laborde, led a high-level political mission to Mali and Niger 2-6 February 2015.

During the mission, which was conducted in partnership with the Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for the Sahel and the Special Representative of the Chairperson of the African Union for Counter-Terrorism Cooperation, the delegation was briefed on the current terrorism threat and recent terrorism trends in the region, and raised awareness of the role of the Committee and CTED to identify shortcomings in counter-terrorism legal, institutional, and operational frameworks, recommend solutions, gather good practices, and facilitate the provision of technical assistance.

As the visit was taking place, Boko Haram launched,for the first time,coordinated attacks against military forces in the south of Niger, ahead of the Government’s planned deployment as part of a multinational force to fight the terrorist organisation.

The delegation held meetings with the President of Niger; the Prime Ministers and Ministers of the Interior, Justice, and Defence of Mali and Niger; the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Mali; the Minister of Religious Affairs of Mali; as well as representatives of specialised counter-terrorism units, intelligence agencies, and Prosecutor’s Offices of the two countries. The delegation also met with the Special Representative of the Secretary-General (SRSG) for Mali; senior officials of the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA); the United Nations Resident Coordinator in Niger; representatives of United Nations agencies operating in Niger; and a number of European Union entities, including EUCAP Sahel, and the Sahel College of Security, which promotes regional cooperation in combating terrorism and organised crime.

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