Arabic version: نظام مدفوعات «داعش في غرب أفريقيا» يدفع إلى شن غارات على مخزونات عسكرية
According to Allafrica, new research from the Institute for Security Studies (ISS) says Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) pays fighters according to weapons and military equipment captured in attacks on Nigerian and regional military bases. The system, funded by Islamic State, uses a fixed price list and helps explain why the Boko Haram faction targets specific bases instead of relying on opportunistic ambushes.
Sources with direct knowledge of ISWAP finances and operations, including former fighters, told ISS that the group’s finance department records spoils of war, known as ghanimah. ISWAP retains one-third of the total value, while the remainder goes to attack participants. An AK-47 is valued at US$750, a rocket-propelled grenade at US$1,000, and a box of ammunition at US$500 to US$1,000 depending on calibre. A pickup fitted with a heavy weapon is valued at US$30,000.
The sums are paid in naira and can be significant in the Lake Chad Basin, where conflict and climate stress have left communities economically marginalised, the analysis said. ISWAP also pays some fighters salaries of ₦75,000, slightly above Nigeria’s national minimum wage of ₦70,000, or US$53. Former fighters said the ghanimah system helped recruit and retain members when ideology alone was insufficient, particularly among people recruited through coercion or economic incentives.
ISS said ISWAP’s weapons controls and payment requirements also reduce the risk of internal rupture by requiring fighters to surrender captured arms. The group’s approach differs from rival Jama’tu Ahlis Sunna Lidda’awati wal-Jihad (JAS), whose fighters primarily earn through predation and robbery of civilians. ISWAP forbids such activity among its own fighters and typically limits members’ access to arms unless they are deployed.
The report called for financial intelligence units to monitor recurring transactions and suspicious currency-exchange activity along routes from the United Arab Emirates to Kano and N’Djamena. Former fighters told ISS that Islamic State funds move through Dubai to Kano or Chad’s capital before local couriers take cash to Lake Chad island hideouts. The analysis also said strengthening military bases and response capabilities could reduce the incentives for attacks.
