Akinola Olojo

Mr. Akinola Ejodame Olojo was a Visiting Research Fellow at the International Centre for Counter-Terrorism – The Hague (ICCT). While at ICCT, he worked on a project that investigated the underlying drivers of violent radicalisation in northern Nigeria, with specific focus on Boko Haram. The project explored socioeconomic instigators such as poverty and underdevelopment with a view to ascertaining the extent to which they incite public support for Boko Haram. While examining the group’s mobilisation strategies, his research analysed the catalytic role of religion and how this has been exploited by Boko Haram in generating mass appeal in Nigeria’s troubled north.

Akinola is a PhD candidate at the Université Paris Descartes in France. He has a Masters in Conflict, Security and Development from King’s College London and a Masters in Political Science from the University of Lagos. From 2010-2012, he was a Peace, Security and Development Fellow at the African Leadership Centre (ALC) in both London and Nairobi. In 2011, he was an African Junior Professional Fellow at the International Peace Institute (IPI), New York. He has conducted external reviews for the knowledge production department of the African Centre for the Constructive Resolution of Disputes (ACCORD) in South Africa. He is also an external reviewer for the Journal of Terrorism Research, the University of St. Andrews, Scotland.

His publications include ‘Engendering Counter-Terrorism in Northern Nigeria’ (ICCT, June 2013); ‘Mediation, Bounties and Amnesty for Boko Haram: A Deadlock of Priorities’ (ICCT, May 2013); ‘Engaging Boko Haram: Militarization, Mediation or Both?’ (IPI, September 2012).