Post Conflict Review of Economic Impact of Boko Haram Insurgency on Public Buildings in Borno State, Nigeria

Abstract

Armed conflict is one of the major challenges of today and in most of the time, the construction sector is the second most affected area after human lives with economic impact of losses incurred in the sector always mirrored in the perspective of fixing back the wreckages in their original forms, rather than fixing back their improved and more secured versions. The study bridges this crucial gap with a new valuation order in which it surveyed, identified and enumerated all public buildings destroyed during Boko Haram insurgency in Borno state and, using ‘enhanced bottom-up’ method of costing violence, designed and evaluated their improved and more secured versions for reconstruction. It is expected to serve as a blueprint for policy formation. Field information for the study were sourced through physical inspection of destruction sites and the use of self-administered questionnaires. Analysis indicated that, public buildings destroyed during Boko Haram insurgency in Borno State require the sum of N3, 614,653,400,000.00 to be replaced with their improved and more secured versions. It is concluded that this amount could have been curtailed with the provision of enhanced community-based custody and security to the buildings. Recommendations therefore include among others, the formal entrustment of every community with security affairs of all public buildings in their jurisdictional areas and the provision of security personnel to assist the communities in security strategies.