ABSTRACT
The Lake Chad Basin Commission established the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF) in 2015 with the support of the African Union. The conflict subsequently extended into neighbouring Cameroon, Chad and Niger, which previously had only been used as safe havens by the group. The most significant attacks in 2018 took place in northeastern Nigeria, although insurgency groups continued to launch attacks in Cameroon, Chad and Niger which were repelled by the MNJTF. Female suicide missions are now a consolidated trademark of the Lake Chad Basin insurgency, with children often being among the perpetrators. The conflict has had a devastating effect on economic activities in the local communities within the Lake Chad Basin. The primary objective of both factions – the establishment an Islamic caliphate in the Lake Chad Basin – remains the same. Competition between the two factions stems more from the need to attain political clout than any fundamental divergence of purpose.
