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1 Kato Van Broeckhoven, et al., Building Bridges: Community Acceptance of Former Boko Haram Associates in the North East of Nigeria 1 (2025)

handle is hein.unl/bdgbdgesc0001 and id is 1 raw text is: Building Bridges: Community Acceptance of Former Boko Haram Associates in the North East of Nigeria Kato Van Broeckhoven * Francesca Batault * Mohammed Bukar * Fatima Yetcha Ajimi Badu Since the Boko Haram insurgency first started in 2009, thousands of former fighters and their families have returned to communities and IDP camps across North East Nigeria and beyond - particularly after the 2021 death of Abubakar Shekau (then leader of the Jama'at Ahl al-Sunna li al-Da'wa wa al- Jihad (JAS) faction) and subsequent inter-factional clashes with the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP).' Despite ongoing conflict, a humanitarian crisis, and insufficient justice mechanisms to deal with conflict-related offenses,2 the public across the region has shown remarkable resilience as they are confronted with people returning from Boko Haram. To better understand how communities are responding to former armed group associates, UNIDIR's Managing Exits from Armed Conflict .(MEAC) initiative has been tracking community perceptions and returnee experiences in Nigeria's Borno, Adamawa, and Yobe (BAY) States since 2020. As previously reported by MEAC, community acceptance has grown over the course of the conflict,3 and 2025 data shows that most community members remain supportive of reintegration. These promising trends, however, are tempered by ongoing fears and challenges faced by specific groups, especially women and girls. MEAC's most recent round of a two-part phone survey in the North East of Nigeria was conducted between April and July 2025 and provides fresh insights into how reintegration is unfolding on the ground. It captures the perspectives of 2,117 community members and 852 former Boko Haram associates (576 boys and men and 276 girls and women).4 In addition to tracking broad trends of reintegration, the survey explored how people experience acceptance as individuals and families return. The analysis and recommendations that follow aim to support practitioners and policymakers working to strengthen sustainable exits from conflict and foster lasting peace in the region.