Rights violations: We got over 3.7m complaints in 2025 —NHRC

By Ikechukwu Nnochiri

ABUJA— The National Human Rights Commission, NHRC, disclosed yesterday that in 2025, it received a total of 3,724,822 complaints across its 38 offices.

According to the commission, the year was marked by significant challenges to the human rights landscape in the country, “with deepening insecurity, widespread violations, and systemic abuses affecting millions of Nigerians.”

While presenting the 2025 human rights dashboard and projections for the year, the Executive Secretary of the NHRC, Dr. Tony Ojukwu, SAN, said the volume of petitions was not only significant but also showed that human rights violations were deeply linked to systemic issues that included inequality, unemployment, weak institutions and limited access to justice.

“This figure is significant, not only in its size, but also in what it represents. It reflects growing public awareness of the commission and its mandate; increased citizen confidence in reporting violations; and persistent structural human rights challenges.

“The complaints received in 2025 spanned a wide range of rights, relating to livelihoods, housing, education, and healthcare; civil and political rights concerns, gender-based violence, child rights violations, and abuses against key and vulnerable populations; and the impact of insecurity, communal conflicts, banditry, and counter-insurgency operations on the enjoyment of human rights.

“Data from the NHRC Observatory further revealed that insecurity, poverty, weak service delivery, and governance deficits continued to intersect with human rights outcomes across different states of the country.

“These challenges were not evenly distributed; they varied by geography, conflict dynamics, and socio-economic context.

“From the January to December 2025 dashboards, we have learnt that human rights violations are deeply linked to systemic issues including inequality, unemployment, weak institutions, and limited access to justice.

“We have also learnt that early warning signs are visible in the data as the   dashboard is not merely a reporting tool; it is a prevention mechanism.”

“One thing that has also been highlighted is that collaboration remains essential. No single institution can address Nigeria’s human rights challenges alone. Progress in 2025 was most visible where government agencies, civil society, traditional institutions, and communities worked together.

“As we look ahead to 2026, the human rights outlook for Nigeria is one of cautious optimism, matched with realism. In this context, the NHRC will prioritise strengthening early warning and prevention mechanisms, using dashboard data to support proactive interventions; deepening engagement with security agencies to ensure human rights compliance in law enforcement and conflict response.

‘’Others include expanding access to justice, particularly for women, children and marginalised communities; leveraging technology and data to improve reporting, monitoring, and response; and

enhancing partnerships with government institutions, civil society, the private sector, and development partners.

“As we present our human rights dashboard and outlook for 2026, I call on all stakeholders to use this data to inform people-centred policies.

“In closing, the 2025 Human Rights Dashboard and the 2026 Outlook reaffirm the National Human Rights Commission’s commitment to building a Nigeria where human dignity is protected, justice is accessible, and accountability is the norm.

“We remain steadfast in our mandate and resolute in our belief that a Nigeria with respect for human rights is not only possible, but achievable,” Ojukwu, SAN, added.

Meanwhile, presenting a breakdown of some recorded rights violations, a senior human rights adviser at the commission, Mr. Hilary Ogbonna, revealed that the North-Central, North-West, and North-East reported the highest number of complaints which, he said, was driven largely by insecurity, communal conflicts, and governance deficits.

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