Northern Nigeria: Stemming the Radicalization Through Vocational Education (a Proactive Approach).

摘要

To stem the tide of radical violence in northern Nigeria, the government needs to strengthen its vocational and technical education system. The violence in northern Nigeria is at least in part the consequence of a young unemployed population living in poverty that is vulnerable to the militant message and cause of Boko Haram. High unemployment, and resultant high poverty rates, in the predominantly Muslim northern states can be combated with effective vocational and technical education programs that are tailored to be compatible with the Muslim communities' mainstream values and are specifically targeted to make use of existing resources while filling a void in the local job market. By leveraging the influence of local clerics, state leaders, and natural resources, the government of Nigeria can bolster existing vocational and technical education programs, thus increasing enrollment and positioning its youth for meaningful employment. The government also must make efforts to rehabilitate the youth who have already succumbed to the violence. Prison and detention center rehabilitation programs that have been instituted in Saudi Arabia and Iraq, and executed by the U.S. military, have incorporated vocational and technical education programs that hold promise for preventing recidivism. Nigeria must explore these program models and develop one for its own prisons and detention centers that will prevent further radicalization and stop recidivism to violence by affording young people an opportunity for gainful employment in the growth areas of manufacturing and industry.