FAITH-BASED INTERVENTIONS IN THE REINTEGRATION OF DISPLACED BOKO HARAM VICTIMS INTO THE SOCIETY: A REVIEW OF SELECTED LITERATURE

Abstract

Boko Haram insurgency has affected many people in the northeastern part of Nigeria. Many of these victims have migrated to other parts of the country. While some of these people become internally displaced persons (IDPs) in IDP centres or camps, some prefer to migrate to, and live among their ancestral relatives. The latter are referred to as migrated displaced persons. Many faith-based organizations especially churches of the Nigerian Baptist Convention have been making efforts to transform the lives of these displaced people and reintegrate them into the society. The paper reviews some related themes such as terrorism and religious violence, Boko Haram insurgency in Nigeria, jihad, trauma, internally displaced persons, Christian theological bases for humanitarianism, Baptist policy/theological stands on humanitarianism, and religious responses to crisis in transforming lives of displaced people from conflict-affected areas. The paper ends with some recommendations for faith-based organizations and the Nigerian government. KEYWORDS: Boko Haram, terrorism, conflict transformation, internally displaced persons, migrated displaced persons, faith-based organizations, Nigerian Baptist Convention, Nigeria