Abstract
The Marxist dialectical and historical materialism paradigm, which posits that every conflict in human society is rooted in economic and geographical factors, helps explain the crises plaguing Nigeria's nation-building aspirations. Because the African postcolonial state has been unable to fulfill most of its responsibilities as a provider of social justice, equity, and security, individuals and groups sometimes express their frustrations through social protests and armed rebellions. The complexity, tenacity, and instructiveness of Boko Haram present a prime opportunity to harness the diachronic links between ecology, economies of poverty, and insurgency. The interface between extremist Islamic ideology and temporal survivalist instinct in a degraded economy holds a heuristic angle to the rebellion that cannot be ignored. Boko Haram will persist as long as desertification exacerbates food shortages, unemployment, poverty, and fear. This reality calls for urgent measures to cushion the hardships created by ecological degradation and scarce opportunities for the growing army of deprived inhabitants in the Lake Chad Basin.