The Federal Government has expressed delight at the recent global endorsement of its fight against terrorism, as contained in the 2017 Global Terrorism Index of the Institute for Economics and Peace (IEP).
Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed stated this in a statement by his assistant, Segun Adeyemi in Abuja on Sunday.
He said the report which shows that the largest decrease in terrorism deaths globally occurred in Nigeria, where terrorism deaths attributed to Boko Haram fell by 80% in 2016.
The minister said it was also encouraging that for the second
consecutive year, the total number of deaths is down with a 13% year-on-year reduction compared to 2015, with four of the five countries most affected by terrorism – Syria, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Nigeria – recording 33% fewer deaths.
He noted that the progress made by Nigeria in the fight against terrorism, since the administration assumed office in 2015, was duly acknowledged by the Executive Chairman of IEP, Steve Killelea, who was quoted by the report as saying, inter alia: “The decline of Boko Haram in Nigeria is having a positive ripple effect, with Cameroon, Chad and Niger collectively recording 75% fewer deaths.”
Alhaji Mohammed said Nigeria’s success in the fight against terrorism is a direct result of the leadership provided by President Buhari, who did not just provide the enabling environment for the Nigerian military to regain its lost glory, but also rallied Nigeria’s neighbours to forge a wide, sub-regional front against Boko Haram.
