The Australian government has warned its citizens against travelling to Nigeria over the high likelihood of terrorism and breakout of civil unrest.

Nigeria’s statistics bureau, in its December crime update, said an estimated 2,235,954 abductions occurred between May 2023 and April 2024. It said the average amount paid as ransom for kidnapping was N2.7 million per incident, with an estimated total ransom of N2.2 trillion paid within the reference period. The North-West reported the highest ransom paid with N1.2 trillion, while the South-East was the least with N85.4 billion.

“Reconsider your need to travel to Nigeria overall due to the volatile security situation and threat of terrorism, kidnapping, violent crime and the risk of civil unrest,” an updated travel advisory by the Australian government stated.

The advisory warned Australians against travelling to Adamawa, Anambra, Imo, Akwa Ibom, Bauchi, Bayelsa, Borno, Cross Rivers, Gombe, Jigawa, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi, Kogi, Niger, Plateau, Rivers, Sokoto, Taraba, Yobe and Zamfara due to the “volatile security situation.”

According to the Australian government, there is also a high threat of terrorism, kidnapping, violent crime and the risk of civil unrest in those states. 

“There’s a high risk of terrorist attacks across Nigeria by various militant groups. Attacks could be indiscriminate or may target foreign interests,” the travel advisory stressed.

It added, “Potential targets include places where crowds gather, such as hotels, bars, restaurants, political meetings, government buildings, places of worship, schools, markets, shopping malls, sporting events, transport hubs and networks, law enforcement facilities, international organisations and camps for displaced people.”

The travel advisory came amid thousands of tourists, including celebrities and Nigerians based abroad, into the country for the ‘Detty December’ end-of-the-year revelry.