Author(s) :

AKINDAPO, Lucinda Titilayo, Asso Prof. EA Bature.

Volume/Issue :

Abstract :

This study examines the intersection of rural banditry and internal insecurity in Nigeria between 2015 and 2023, focusing specifically on the socio-economic vulnerabilities of rural women across the Chikun, Giwa, and Kachia Local Government Areas of Kaduna State. Methodologically, the study adopts a pragmatic research philosophy and utilizes an explanatory mixed-methods research design that integrates quantitative and qualitative approaches. Quantitative primary data were gathered to measure measurable patterns, frequency, and statistical effects of banditry, while qualitative data from Key Informant Interviews (KIIs) captured the detailed, lived experiences and coping strategies of rural women, community leaders, and security personnel. These data streams were systematically integrated and triangulated with secondary sources to deepen the validity of the findings. Theoretically, the study is anchored on Feminist Political Economy (FPE) theory, integrated with Personal Security Theory, to analyze how structural gender inequalities, resource access limitations, and perceived threat environments shape and compound the security risks faced by women in conflict zones. The findings reveal that persistent banditry characterized by village raids, mass kidnappings, and volatile forest corridor attacks has severely decimated the local agrarian economy. This violence has forced rural women to abandon farmlands and strategic markets due to mobility restrictions, triggering severe household income loss, acute food insecurity, and profound psychological trauma, while exposing major institutional gaps and trust deficits within formal security responses. Keywords: Banditry, Internal Insecurity, Rural Women, Kaduna State, Feminist Political Economy.

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