The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) says it is making sustained effort to determine the whereabouts of 1,500 missing persons in Yobe State.

The head, Sub-Delegation of the ICRC, Syed -Rashid Hassan, stated this in Damaturu on Thursday at a stakeholders’ meeting ahead of the International Day of the Disappeared.

Mr Hassan said the figure was part of the 17,000 missing persons across the country, half of whom were children at the time of their disappearance.

He said the persons disappeared due to devastating and enduring consequences of armed conflicts, natural disasters and migration, leaving families with profound emotional, economic, legal and psychosocial challenges.

The official noted that by the end of 2025, more than 513,000 people worldwide had been registered as missing through the Family Links Network of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement.

Mr Hassan said ICRC had worked with families of missing persons for more than 160 years, stressing that its humanitarian response was focused not only on finding missing people but also on supporting their families.

He explained that the issue extended beyond the disappearance itself, as families often struggled with uncertainty, loss of income, legal and administrative difficulties, psychological distress and the need for official acknowledgement of their suffering.

The official said this struggle informed the launch of Accompaniment Programme in Damaturu, designed to help families cope with the emotional, psychological and wider social challenges associated with the disappearance of their loved ones.

According to him more than 50 families have so far benefited from the programme.

Mr Hassan listed other activities of the ICRC and stakeholders to include preventing family separation, restoring family links, clarifying the fate and whereabouts of missing persons and protecting the dignity of the deceased through proper management of bodies.

The official commended the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA), for its role in making Yobe the first state to implement the National Mass Fatality Response Plan.

He called for the establishment of stronger legal and institutional frameworks to determine what happened to the disappeared and a support system to address the economic needs of families of missing persons.

Mr Hassan also acknowledged the efforts of the state Ministry of Justice’s Sector Reform Team for approving a review of the state’s coroner’s law, saying the reform could contribute significantly to preventing deceased persons from becoming unidentified.

The official appreciated the Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education and the Yobe State Universal Basic Education Board for incorporating key messages on preventing family separation into activities in primary schools.

In his remarks, the state chairman, Families of the Missing, Ali Idris, expressed appreciation to the ICRC, community leaders and the state government for their numerous supports to members of the association.

He noted that the International Day of the Disappeared 2026, with the theme, “Every Missing Person Matters: Remembering, Supporting and Reconnecting Families,” spoke directly to their unpleasant experiences.

“For us, the issue of missing persons is not simply a statistics, a case number of humanitarian concern.

“Every Missing person is a father, mother son, daughter, brother, sister, husband, wife, friend or loved one. Every missing person matters,” he said.

Mr Idris appealed to the state government and development partners to intensify coordinated efforts in tracing missing persons, supporting affected families and preventing further disappearance.

Highlights of the commemoration included photo exhibition featuring missing persons, designed to give visibility to individuals whose whereabouts remained unknown and to highlight the struggles of endless search by their families.

The ICRC said photographs, shoes, clothes and other personal belongings often become important symbols for families because they preserved memories, identity and a tangible connection to missing loved ones.

(NAN)