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Paper short abstract

This paper analyses how informal and interlocking security networks shape local responses to insecurity in northern Nigeria. It shows how traditional and religious leaders and community groups engage in non-state policing practices that both complement state security and reveal important limitations

Paper long abstract

Northern Nigeria has been profoundly affected by ever-evolving threats, ranging from the activities of insurgents and bandits to other criminal groups. These dynamics have disrupted peace, security and development, while undermining social cohesion. While existing research has highlighted the importance of examining local institutions and actors (Van Metre and Scherer, 2023; Walch, 2022; Kaplan, 2017), few studies have provided an in-depth context-specific analysis of how these actors understand and perceive their role in building peace. This paper examines how informal and interlocking security networks function as bottom-up approaches to building peace in northern Nigeria. Drawing on qualitative interviews, it shows that traditional and religious leaders, alongside neighbourhood watches, vigilante groups, and security committees, engage in local initiatives that combine vigilance, intelligence-sharing, and coordination alongside formal state security actors. These strategies exemplify forms of non-state policing and constructive partnership, through which local actors frequently complement state security provision. However, important limitation arises, including the potential for overreach, such as the targeting marginalised or vulnerable groups. Despite these risks, local actors frame these responses as anticipatory, contextually embedded, and oriented towards mitigating specific threats, including petty crime, violent phone snatching, and potential insurgent activity. Conceptually, the paper situates informal security networks as relational and socially embedded resilience practices that mobilise pre-existing social actors to sustain peace and contributes to debates on bottom-up approaches to peacebuilding by highlighting both their potential and limits in conflict-prone settings.