| Territory | Major cities in Nigeria, including Lagos, Ibadan, Onitsha, Aba, Umuahia, Akure, Ado-Ekiti, and Enugu |
|---|---|
| Membership | Street children, teenagers, and youths, mostly males |
| Activities | Extortion, illegal drug sale, informal security, other "odd jobs" |
Area boys (Yoruba: agbèrò)[1] are loosely organized gangs of street children, teenagers and youths, composed mostly of males, who operate on the streets of major cities in Nigeria, including Lagos, Ibadan, Onitsha, Aba, Umuahia, Akure, Ado-Ekiti and Enugu.[2][3] They extort money from passers-by, public transporters and traders, sell illegal drugs, act as informal security guards, and perform other "odd jobs" in return for compensation.[4][5]
In present times, "Agbero" is used informally to describe a person, usually a thug, who collects rates, fees, tools and other forms of tax around motor parks.[6]
- ^ Ngwobo, Chris (July 2004). "Area Boys: Menace to Society". This Present House. Freedom Hall. Archived from the original on 27 September 2007. Retrieved 4 March 2007.
- ^ Heap, Simon (2010). "'Their Days are Spent in Gambling and Loafing, Pimping for Prostitutes, and Picking Pockets': Male Juvenile Delinquents on Lagos Island, Nigeria, 1920s-60s". Journal of Family History. 35 (1): 48–70. doi:10.1177/0363199009348306. PMID 20099405. S2CID 24010849.
- ^ www.cbn.gov.ng https://www.cbn.gov.ng/out/publications/pressRelease/HRD/2009/HR%5CCode%20104_27001%20to%2030649.htm. Retrieved 9 November 2022.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ^ IRIN (14 July 2005). "Area Boys -- a growing menace on the streets of Lagos". NEWSfromAFRICA. Koinonia International. Archived from the original on 19 May 2007. Retrieved 3 March 2007.
- ^ Momoh, Abubakar (2000). "Yoruba Culture and Area Boys in Lagos". In Jega, Attahiru (ed.). Identity Transformation and Identity Politics under Structural Adjustment in Nigeria. Nordic Africa Institute. p. 184. ISBN 91-7106-456-7.
- ^ "The Nation August 24, 2012 by The Nation - Issuu". issuu.com. 23 August 2012. Retrieved 9 November 2022.