Seun Bamidele is a PhD research fellow at the Institute of Peace, Security, and Governance, Ekiti State University, Ado-Ekiti, Nigeria. He is presently a lecturer in international relations at Chrisland University, Abeokuta, Nigeria and mostly works with topics related to peace and conflict in Africa, including issues such as land rights and conflicts of citizenship, migration and the new landscape that is emerging with regard to insurgency and geopolitics. Bamidele holds the United Nations training certificate in peace and security from the Peace Operations Training Institute, United States of America and is also a recipient of many international grants, awards, and fellowships including the prestigious Next Generation Social Sciences in Africa fellowship of the Social Science Research Council (2017, 2018, 2019); Trust Africa (2015); Equator Peace Academy, Uganda Martyrs University, Uganda, (2012) and Women in International Security (WIIS), Washington, USA. He has published articles in India Quarterly: A Journal of International Affairs (SAGE) International Journal on Minority and Group Rights (Brill); African Conflict and Peacebuilding Review (Indiana University Press), and Jadavpur Journal of International Relations (SAGE) and African Journal of Legal Studies (Brill).
Award Information
This study examines the role of the Civilian Joint Task Force (CJTF) in the fight against Boko Haram insurgency in the north-eastern region of Nigeria. It examines the possibility of the community security arrangement becoming the future of counter-insurgency in Nigeria. CJTF emerged in the midst of upheavals caused by Boko Haram insurgency, first as an independent community effort, and later as a partnership with security forces. Although worries have been expressed in some quarters about the CJTF metamorphosing into an ethnic militia, the fact that the CJTF neutralized the Boko Haram threat indicates that it has untapped security potential. The study adopts David Galula's theory of counter-insurgency, which identifies two approaches to counter-insurgency: direct and indirect. While direct approach advocates strictly military forces, indirect approach emphasizes involving civilians. The research design is historical and exploratory. Primary data will be collected in Adamawa, Borno and Yobe States through structured key informant interviews, in-depth interviews and focus group discussion. Secondary data will be sourced from texts and the internet. Preliminary interviews have been carried out in the pilot study to test the validity of the research instruments.
