Майдугури: История и современность города в Нигерии

Capital city of Borno State, Nigeria

Maiduguri /m//aɪ/'/d//uː//g//ʊ//r//i/ is the capital and the largest city of Borno State in north eastern Nigeria, on the continent of Africa. The city sits along the seasonal Ngadda River which disappears into the Firki swamps in the areas around Lake Chad. Maiduguri was founded in 1907 as a military outpost by the British Empire during the colonial period. As of 2022, Maiduguri is estimated to have a population of approximately two million in the metropolitan area.

The region was home to the Kanem Bornu Empire for centuries. Maiduguri actually consists of two cities: Yerwa to the West and Old Maiduguri to the east. Yerwa was founded in 1907 by Abubakar Garbai of Borno as the capital of the Bornu Kingdom. The location had before that been a small village known as Kalwa. This involved the transfer of the capital of the Kanuri people from Kukawa. Old Maiduguri was selected by the British as their military headquarters in 1908, replacing Mafoni. Maiduguri is one of the fifteen Local Government Areas (LGAs) that constitute the Borno Emirate, a traditional state located in Borno State, Nigeria.

Since the mid 1960s, Maiduguri has witnessed outbreaks of large inter religious riots with members of religious sects leading intercommunal violence in 1982 and 2001. On 18 February 2006, riots related to the Muhammad cartoons published by the Danish newspaper Jyllands Posten left at least 15 people dead, and resulted in the destruction of approximately 12 churches. Soldiers and police quelled the riots, and the government temporarily imposed a curfew. In 2002, Muslim cleric Mohammed Yusuf founded the Islamist jihadist group Boko Haram in Maiduguri, establishing a mosque and a madrasa that attracted children from poor Muslim families from both Nigeria and neighboring countries.

The city is the heart of the Boko Haram insurgency In late July 2009, Maiduguri was the worst hit location of major religious violence in northern Nigeria committed by Boko Haram, which left over 700 people dead. On 14 May 2013, President Goodluck Jonathan declared a state of emergency in northeast Nigeria, including Borno State, due to the militant activity of Boko Haram. The entire city was under overnight curfew, and trucks were only restricted to dusk dawn from entering t protect civilian lives in the city. Twelve areas of the city that are known to be strongholds of Boko Haram are under permanent curfew. On 18 June 2013, Boko Haram militants attacked a school as students were taking an exam; nine students were killed. In 2014, Boko Haram bombed Maiduguri in January, July and November. On 10 January 2015, a bomb attack was executed at the Monday Market in Maiduguri, killing 19 people. In the early hours of 25 January, Boko Haram launched a major assault on the city. On 26 January, CNN reported that the attack on Maiduguri by "hundreds of gunmen" had been repelled, but the nearby town of Monguno was captured by Boko Haram. The Nigerian Army claimed to have successfully repelled another attack on Maiduguri on 31 January 2015. On 17 February 2015, Monguno subsequently fell to the Nigerian military in a coordinated air and ground assault. On 7 March 2015, five suicide bomb blasts left 54 dead and 143 wounded. On 30 May 2015, Boko Haram launched another attack on the city, killing thirteen people. In March 2017 Boko Haram again bombed Maiduguri. It was attacked in January/February 2015, bombed in March 2015, and attacked again in May 2015. In May 2016, Amnesty International released a report on the Giwa barracks detention centre, calling it a "place of death." The report alleges the facilities house about 1,200 people (including 120 children) and that many of these were detained arbitrarily. It further claims that 149 detainees had died in the first half of 2016, including 11 children. In 2019, Amnesty International (AI) and Concerned Nigerians (CN) called for investigation into alleged abuse of women and children in the facility. Tramadol addiction has become a concern in the Maiduguri region, as Boko Haram fighters and local residents turn to the drug to cope with physical pain, personal loss, and the emotional consequences of violence.

Köppen Geiger climate classification system classifies its climate as hot semi arid (BSh). The highest record temperature was on 28 May 1983, while the lowest record temperature was on 26 December 1979. Tree planting was a priority of the city's colonial administration, and large trees along major roads give protection from intense sun.

As a result of chemical reactions involving moving vehicles and the release of gases that can cause inhalation into the deepest parts of the lung, Maiduguri is currently experiencing particulate dust, a harmful air pollutant.

The city lies at the end of a railway line connecting Port Harcourt, Enugu, Kafanchan, Kuru, Bauchi, and finally Maiduguri. The city is served by the Maiduguri International Airport.

Maiduguri is the principal trading hub for north eastern Nigeria. Its economy is largely based on services and trade with a small share of manufacturing. Maiduguri is home to three markets which include a modern "Monday market". that has a spectacular image view. The city has an appealing layout, with wide, well maintained streets, sidewalks and flood management ditches. Electricity is provided by grid connections, solar power and by generators. A 2009 survey of property markets in Nigeria positioned Maiduguri as the third most expensive for buying and renting in after Abuja and Lagos. A journalist who described local commerce wrote that "on the edge of the city, never ending lines of lorries spend days waiting to take their cargoes to Dikwa and beyond to neighbouring Cameroon." Firewood gathering is a source of income for newer residents who have been displaced by violence, and the harvest shortfalls resulting from climate change. Members of Maiduguri's official Association of Firewood Sellers provide labor for tree replanting efforts. An additional source of support for displaced persons is a mobile phone based cash distribution site which was set up by the World Food Programme and the Nigerian Government.

Among places of worship are predominantly Muslim mosques. There are also Christian churches and temples: Church of Nigeria (Anglican Communion), Church of the Brethren in Nigeria (EYN), The Kyarimi Park is the oldest and largest zoo in Nigeria. The zoo attracts thousands of visitors per year. The city is within a short driving distance to picnic areas in Alo Lake and Zambiza game reserve.