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Oluwafemi Awodele
1 week ago
Overview
The Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) has quietly built a functioning state-like economy across the Lake Chad region, controlling farms and cattle business through a complex taxation and governance regime that rivals Somalia-style jihadi fiefdoms.
According to a report by The New Humanitarian news agency, ISWAP collects an estimated $191 million annually through a formalised system of levies on fishers, farmers, traders and migrant workers.
Originally a project of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), The New Humanitarian (formerly IRIN News) operated under the UN until January 1, 2015. On March 21, 2019, IRIN relaunched independently as The New Humanitarian.
The news agency, which said its report was based on painstaking investigations, stated that what the extremists make per year vastly outstrips the official tax intake of the Borno State government, which it said took in only about $18.4 million in 2024.
more: https://www.nairaland.com/8488974/iswap-makes-191m-annually-taxing
