Demography and insecurity: Youth bulge and the Lake Chad Basin security quandary

Abstract

ABSTRACT Insecurity is a prominent phenomenon that threatens the peace and development of Africa in general and particularly, the Lake Chad Basin [LCB]. One of the factors driving the menace is the phenomenon of youth bulge. This article argues that young people with poor economic prospects are liable to be recruited for violence. Situated within the grievance model, the article shows how youth make up the larger percentage of protesting, violent and armed groups in the region and presents evidence of how grievance against deprivation moves demography to exacerbate insecurity. The article adopts a qualitative approach and relies on secondary data sourced from briefs, government reports, peer-reviewed journal articles and internet sources. The findings show that the endless supply of children and young people in the LCB is a major factor driving insecurity. By examining the phenomenon of Almajiri, child soldiers and youth radicalisation as enablers of conflict and insecurity in the LCB, the article concludes that population explosion amid a lack of resources leads to grievance and fuels insecurity. This is significant given the paucity of literature on the incidence of demography and insurgency in the LCB; which has become a theatre of insecurity in Africa.