MAIDUGURI — Fatima Tahir, a women's leader with the Gomari Development Association, mobilized women and led peace initiatives focused on community registration, gang dialogues, and violence prevention in Maiduguri's Bulunkutu area. Youth gangs known as "Marlians" operate in Maiduguri and Jere, with members using knives, axes, machetes, and locally made weapons.

"I was tasked to mobilise women, train them, and look after youth to ensure peace across the Gomari and Bulunkutu areas," Tahir said. She also placed women representatives in various neighborhoods. "I also placed women representatives in various neighbourhoods to oversee dialogue engagements between different rival gangs," she said. These women track emerging disputes, monitor areas associated with drug use, and pass information to community leaders, police, the military, and the Civilian Joint Task Force.

In 2023, Borno State Governor Babagana Umara Zulum ordered a crackdown on gangs after deadly clashes. Residents accused gang members of using commercial tricycles to snatch phones, ambush passengers, and carry out robberies. The Ajilari Cross Development Association and the Gomari Development Association have conducted community mediation efforts.

Bulama Babangida, a community leader overseeing peace initiatives in Ajilari, reported that some gang members have retired from violence. "Once-feared gang members have retired from violence," Babangida said. He added, "We have trained local women who now run weekly peace awareness programmes on Sundays for these gangs and collaborate with state security actors to handle disputes before they become fatal." Organizers of mediation initiatives report paying for meetings and outreach efforts from their own pockets. Babangida spends his days inside a shop and his evenings settling disputes.

Ma'aji Abba, a 27-year-old former gang member from Gomari, was released from prison in May. "Many people say we join these gangs because of unemployment, but to me, that's not the root cause," Abba said. "The problem is deeply embedded in the environment where we grew up." He added, "When you grow up in a place where communities are constantly clashing, you will naturally join the fight, even if you don't know why people are fighting." Abba hopes to raise money to start a clothing business. Former gang members have reported facing threats from rival neighborhoods seeking revenge.