Nigeria 2020 OSAC Crime & Safety Report: Abuja
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Nigeria 2020 OSAC Crime & Safety Report: Abuja This is an annual report produced in conjunction with the Regional Security Office at the U.S. Embassy in Abuja. OSAC encourages travelers to use this report to gain baseline knowledge of security conditions in northern and central Nigeria. For more in-depth information, review OSAC’s Nigeria country page for original OSAC reporting, consular messages, and contact information, some of which may be available only to private-sector representatives with an OSAC password. U.S. Embassy Abuja has security and consular responsibility for the following states in Nigeria: Adamawa, Bauchi, Benue, Borno, Gombe, Jigawa, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi, Kogi, Kwara, Nassarawa, Niger, Plateau, Sokoto, Taraba, Yobe, Zamfara, and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). Consulate General Lagos has security and consular responsibility for all other states in Nigeria. Travel Advisory The current U.S. Department of State Travel Advisory at the date of this report’s publication assesses Nigeria at Level 3, indicating travelers should reconsider travel to Nigeria due to crime, terrorism, civil unrest, kidnapping, and maritime crime, which includes kidnappings, hijackings, boardings, theft, etc. Do not travel to Borno and Yobe States and Northern Adamawa State due to terrorism; Adamawa, Bauchi, Borno, Gombe, Kaduna, Kano, and Yobe states due to kidnapping; and Coastal areas of Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Cross Rivers, Delta, and Rivers states (with the exception of Port Harcourt) due to crime, civil unrest, kidnapping, and maritime crime. Review OSAC’s report, Understanding the Consular Travel Advisory System. Overall Crime and Safety Situation Crime Threats The U.S. Department of State has assessed Abuja as being a CRITICAL-threat location for crime directed at or affecting official U.S. government interests. Criminals are prone to use violence, and criminals may meet resistance with deadly force. Home invasions remain a threat, with armed robbers targeting guarded compounds by scaling perimeter walls, following residents/visitors, or subduing guards to gain entry. A significant number of kidnappings for ransom targeting Westerners have occurred in the Abuja Consular District. Review OSAC’s reports, All That You Should Leave Behind Review OSAC’s reports, Hotels: The Inns and Outs and Considerations for Hotel Security Review OSAC’s reports, The Overseas Traveler’s Guide to ATM Skimmers & Fraud and Taking Credit. Cybersecurity Issues Cybercrime has become a concern and is becoming more sophisticated. Business email compromise has proliferated and has included phishing, spear phishing, and even social engineering techniques. The technical proficiency has improved, making suspicious emails and contacts harder to identify. Review OSAC’s reports, Cybersecurity Basics, Best Practices for Maximizing Security on Public Wi-Fi, Traveling with Mobile Devices: Trends & Best Practices, and Satellite Phones: Critical or Contraband? Transportation-Safety Situation Road Safety and Road Conditions Driving is a major safety concern, particularly outside of Abuja and Lagos. Most roads are below U.S. standards, and motorists typically do not yield the right-of-way or consider other vehicles or pedestrians. Expect excessive speed and reckless driving habits. Most vehicles lack basic maintenance and safety equipment. Enforcement of traffic laws is inconsistent. Accidents involving passenger buses, taxis, and personally- owned vehicles are frequent, and often result in catastrophic injury—in a country where the standard of medical care is far below U.S. standards. Accidents also may draw large crowds that can become confrontational towards the driver, particularly if the accident involves a pedestrian. Schedule travel, particularly outside major cities, during daylight hours only. Avoid driving at night. Always slow down and follow directions of police/military at checkpoints. Police and military elements operating checkpoints may shoot at vehicles that appear to be a threat. At night, when approaching such a checkpoint, hide any valuables, turn off your headlights (leaving your driving lights on), turn on the interior dome light so the officers/soldiers can see how many people are in the vehicle, and remain stationary with your hands in plain sight. If asked for ID, keep your windows rolled up and press your ID against the window for officials to read. Review OSAC’s reports, Road Safety Abroad, Driving Overseas: Best Practices, and Evasive Driving Techniques; and read the State Department’s webpage on driving and road safety abroad. Public Transportation Conditions Avoid taxis, which are generally mechanically unsafe and unreliable. This includes private vehicles that may stop and offer pedestrians a ride to their destination. Trains in Nigeria tend to be a slow and relatively safe form of transportation. However, consider ground transportation options once you arrive at your destination, as well as the limited options for escape, should there be a criminal and/or terrorist action against the train at a scheduled stop or along the route. Review OSAC’s report, Security In Transit: Airplanes, Public Transport, and Overnights. Aviation/Airport Conditions Avoid taxis for travel from the airport to the city upon arrival. Criminals posing as "meet and greet" airport facilitators have lured foreigners into cars purportedly to take them to their hotels, only to take their passenger to a secluded place and rob them. Do not leave the airport with anyone who does not show proper pre-arranged identification, even if the person is holding a sign with the traveler's name. Abuja’s Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport (ABV) has a new terminal and an excellent safety record. The Aviation Safety Network shows only seven accidents in its database (2019 data). None of the incidents involves error of the flight controllers or ground crews, with the most recent incident occurring in January 2018. Outside of Abuja, smaller airports exist, but security protocols may not meet U.S. standards. Airport amenities are limited. Many smaller airports (some are only airstrips) cannot support nighttime operations and must rely on visual flight rules. Regional flights are routinely delayed, and accurate information on flight status is often unavailable either online or at airports. Terrorism Threat The U.S. Department of State has assessed Abuja as being a HIGH-threat location for terrorism directed at or affecting official U.S. government interests. Regional terrorism remains a significant threat. Nigerian efforts to combat regional terrorism continue to prove challenging. The terrorist organizations Boko Haram (BH) and the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISIS-WA) are both active in northeastern Nigeria and are Department of State-designated Foreign Terrorist Organizations. Both groups are responsible for deadly attacks on churches, schools, mosques, Nigerian government installations, educational institutions, and entertainment venues in Adamawa, Bauchi, Borno, Gombe, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Jigawa, Lagos, Plateau, Taraba, Yobe, and Zamfara states, and the Federal Capital Territory. Markets remain especially vulnerable. Both groups have the capability to manufacture and employ suicide vests, improvised explosive devices, and vehicle-borne improvised explosive devices. In 2016, Boko Haram divided into two factions. The new faction calls itself Islamic State in West Africa Province (ISIS-WA) and is an ISIS affiliate, while the other faction remained loyal to its historical leadership. Boko Haram is suspected of or has claimed responsibility for most of the terrorist activity in Nigeria, but ISIS-WA has become increasingly active. Boko Haram has conducted kidnappings, killings, bombings, and attacks on civilian and military targets, resulting in tens of thousands of deaths, injuries, and significant destruction of property. While generally operating in northeastern Nigeria, these groups are not confined there. Nigerian security forces have been largely successful in disrupting operations in other parts of the country, including in Abuja, since 2014. Anti-U.S./Anti-Western Sentiment Westerners and foreigners in general (including individuals who work for them) are susceptible to kidnapping, injury, or death in locations prone to targeting by BH, ISIS-WA, and other armed groups. As Nigerian counter-terrorism efforts ebb and flow in terms of success, groups such as non-governmental organizations (NGOs) providing humanitarian assistance in the northeast face potential terrorist targeting. They also operate under close government scrutiny. Political, Economic, Religious, and Ethnic Violence The U.S. Department of State has assessed Abuja as being a HIGH-threat location for political violence directed at or affecting official U.S. government interests. Demonstrations can become violent. In 2019, Islamic Movement of Nigeria demonstrations in Abuja, for example, resulted in parked cars being set afire along the route, attacks on government buildings, and the death of a senior police official. Visitors and residents should avoid large political gatherings and remain aware of their surroundings. Demonstrations conducted without the permission of the government, or which stray outside of agreed-upon parameters, generally face aggressive crowd-control actions by security forces, including the deployment of teargas and firing of weapons into the air. Review OSAC’s report, Surviving a Protest. Religious/Ethnic Violence So-called “farmer-herder” clashes are prevalent in the Middle