Evaluation of the Impacts of Boko Haram Activities on the Patronage of Yankari Game Reserve, Bauchi State, Nigeria

Abstract

This study examined the temporal pattern of tourists’ patronage at Yankari Game Reserve before and after the emergence of Boko Haram between 2000 and 2019. Data for this study were obtained from both primary and secondary sources. The primary data were gotten through the administration of structured questionnaire. The result indicated that 90.0% of the tourists alleged that bombings and suicide attack carried out respectively by the Boko Haram sect made them not to visit the reserve in about five years. In addition, 72.5.0% affirmed that stories and news feeds of massacre orchestrated by Boko Haram have reduced their rate of patronage of the tourist site. T-test was employed to test the hypothesis. Findings revealed that there is a significant difference (t = 6.010, p<0.05) in the temporal pattern of tourist patronage before and after the emergence of Boko Haram insurgency. The study has shown that Boko Haram activities have affected  tourist patronage of Yankari Game Reserve. It is recommended that the Nigerian government should strategize on how to put an end to the Boko Haram crisis in the northeastern part of the country which could lead to increases in tourist patronage of Yankari Game Reserve.