IT was only a few minutes past 11 p.m, the silence of the night outside was thick with tension broken by the occasional rustling of leaves and distant howl of roaming dogs. On that Friday night in December 2021, 23-year-old Grace Sunday felt a sudden gush of fluid rush down her legs, soaking the hem of her wrapper. 

Recalling that it was a situation she dreaded most, Grace* said, “I had prayed against this. Every night, I whispered to my unborn child, begging it to come while I am down the hill.”

Ganawuri Primary Healthcare, the nearest hospital sits six kilometres away, across jagged rocks and steep footpaths carved under the hills of Danuwal village, Riyom Local Government Area (LGA) of Plateau State.

Grace said a wave of fear gripped her, a similar situation that haunted her since the day her mother died. She couldn’t shake the feeling that history might repeat itself.

“There is no road for a vehicle or bike, only a treacherous route that we fear to tread at night because it is dangerous not just because of the terrain, but because of the lurking presence of armed men who had turned the road into an attackers’ den,” she narrates.

Aided by her aged mother-in-law, husband and a few neighbours, Grace trudged through the rocky path that midnight, breathing heavily with each step.

“I walked slowly with my mother-in-law and husband holding me on both arms all through. I sat down to rest sometimes, drank water, and sometimes squatted. We arrived at the PHC at 3 a.m.,” she said.

In tears, Grace shared how she had longed to finally hold and cuddle her first baby but those dreams were shattered just hours after she entered the labour room.

“My child came out still, without breathing. It broke me completely,” she said, using the edge of her wrapper to wipe away the tears streaming down her cheeks. Lowering her head, she let out a long, weary sigh and whispered, “My mother also died from child delivery.”

Grace’s experience reflects a broader concern among women in northern Nigeria, one of the places with the highest maternal mortality rates in the world.

Women in Danuwal give birth under life-threatening conditions. This is partly why, in Plateau State, out of every 1,000 babies born, about 65 don’t survive and around 110 children die before they turn five according to a 2018 data that is still cited. 

“Her mother started complaining of a sharp pain around on a Saturday evening. By 7:00 p.m., I, along with my brother-in-law who is her husband, and some neighbours, started walking her down the hill,” Sarah Joshua, her aunty continued speaking with The ICIR, as Grace was too overwhelmed with emotion to go on.

Sarah said Grace’s mother, went into labour a few hours after they arrived at the PHC in Ganawuri. However, the major challenge was that she lost a significant amount of blood, and it took hours to find a suitable donor.

“My sister-in-law and I had left the hospital to get dinner for her and the rest of the family waiting there. But when we got home, we were met with tears and cries,” she recalled. 

Danuwal: A village on the hill

Danuwul is a small village tucked on a rocky hilltop in Bum Ward, Ganawuri District of Riyom LGA of Plateau State.

The ICIR observed that neighbouring communities refres to Danuwal as “Yan saman dutse” in Hausa, meaning “people of the hilltop”.

Danuwal’s link to the outside world is a long, narrow trail winding through the hills, since there is no road for vehicles. 

According to the village head, Da Davou Badung Zam, the community has existed for nearly eighty years and is home to over one thousand residents. He added that 25 years ago, residents raised funds to build a PHC in the community after the Plateau State PHC promised to equip it and send some healthcare workers.

According to him, this happened after numerous appeals for support were made to the LGA secretariat and campaigning politicians.

“When it became clear the government wouldn’t take action, we decided to pool our resources and build the facility ourselves,” Da Davou said. 

He explained that two years after construction, the State PHC board sent three staff members, but the facility was never equipped. “One of them retired just a few months after arriving, and the others eventually stopped coming altogether,” he added.

He said that over the years, the building remained unused, and by 2023, it finally collapsed.

The Acting Director of Primary Health Care Riyom, Grace Pam, told the ICIR that she had reported the issue to the LGA chairman soliciting assistance, but there had been no response. 

“The structure they showed you was existing. Because last year that rainstorm blew it up. The community have been trying. We reported to the LGA chairman, whether they can do something about it, but up to now, they have never responded. Even when the local committee came to the local government, we reported it to the chairman, and we’re still expecting a response from the LGA,” she said. 

Pam acknowledged that a healthcare worker was assigned to the community until his retirement and has continued to volunteer afterwards because of the ongoing shortage of healthcare workers.

Pam revealed that only 50 to 60 healthcare workers are stretched across 44 functional facilities across the state including the one in Danuwal community, which was self-built and has since collapsed.

“It is the volunteer health workers that are supporting us. They are our backbone now,” she said.

Unlike Grace, Mary Emmanuel (21) delivered both her children at home, relying solely on the assistance of her mother and older women, with no professional medical support. This is not unique to Plateau, read a report by The ICIR on how Niger communities rely on untrained Traditional Birth Attendants.

“My labour began at midnight, but I waited until morning to go to the hospital because of the difficult terrain,” she explained.

Mary recounted that they had just set out when she suddenly felt the baby’s head coming. She cried out for help, and right there, her mother helped her deliver the child.

“When my second baby came, I didn’t bother to go to the hospital again. I delivered at home without any professional help,” she added. 

Rose Marcus, a mother of five, also shared that only two of her children were born in a hospital, while the other three were delivered at home. Other women who spoke with The ICIR shared similar experiences.

Rose Yakubu who assist in childbirth, said she participated in two certification trainings organised by the LGA to support women in the community during childbirth.

“I have assisted in the delivery of more than eight women, and whenever I noticed any complications, such as excessive bleeding, I referred them to the hospital in Ganawuri,” she said.

Budget utilisation

While Danuwal mirrors the plight of nearly 30 million Nigerians living in isolated rural areas without access to essential services, rural development budgets have never been fully utilised in the last four years.

Da Davou said that the primary school structure they built in 2018 also fell apart 2023. 

“It’s heartbreaking enough that we lack a motorable road due to the hilly terrain, but it’s even more devastating that we have no school, no hospital, and no access to clean water,” he lamented.

The community leader explained that during electoral campaigns, politicians make their way through the hilly terrain to the village, promising change and development. However, he noted that these promises are quickly forgotten once they secure the votes, leaving the community still struggling with unmet needs.

The Ward Supervisory Councillor, Tertullus Wycliffe Wanson, admitted that in 2023, he and colleagues from other political parties climbed the rocky terrain to campaign to the residents. Wanson, who assumed office in November 2024, explained that the only project captured under Danuwal’s infrastructure so far is the renovation of the police station, which is located at the foot of the mountain.

“My first promise for them was security. And I made a promise to provide drinking water for them. Then those roads. I’ve captured it. I’ve written to the local and state government, but this year they didn’t capture it,” he explained.

The councillor said he is unable to provide scanned copies of the documents he submitted to the LGA and state government.

“We wrote, took it to the government, and we lobbied. They gave us a budget proposal form, which every community has to indicate what you want to be doing in your community.

“I’m going to put more pressure on the local government to construct a road in that particular area, because now I understand.”

Sexual abuse and other forms of violence 

The women in this community tie at least a bundle of firewood and a bag of grains to grind at the mill after sales for the day for dinner, they trek to Ganawuri or Tahoos,  neighbouring villages underneath the hill where they sell each bundle for N1,500.

In November 2024, Chomo*, a mother of three, headed home around 4:30 p.m. after making some sales. She carried a small sack of maize, freshly ground, along with a few ingredients, just enough to prepare a modest dinner.

As she reached the crest of the hill and began walking through the lonely and quiet footpath leading home, the rustling in the bushes ahead made her halt. 

“Two men stepped out, their tall frames blocking the narrow trail and their faces were unreadable. My heart pounded as I held my sack tighter,” she narrated.

“The first man who mumbled something in Fulfulde snatched the bag and pushed me to the ground. I begged for mercy even as the second man raped me,” she said.

The community leader confirmed that over twenty-four cases of rape were reported in 2024 at the same spot where Chomo said she was raped.

“Most of these cases go unreported, because of stigmatisation but these are the cases that were reported to me,” Da Davou said.

Martina*, Tina*, and Talatu* recounted how they were attacked by two armed men speaking while returning from Tahoos in January 2025.

“I was in front, and I heard someone shouting. When I turned around, a man was pointing a machete against Talatu’s neck. A second man stepped out in my front and started demanding that we give them sex.”

Tina, who was pregnant, said she started crying and explaining her condition and the men said they didn’t want anything from her.

Martina said she threw the sack of ground grain she was carrying into the bush and ran when she saw that the second man started dragging Talatu toward a secluded area of the bushes.

“The second man chased after me and caught up with me. He pressed me to the ground and started struggling to raise my skirt,” Tina said as she betrayed emotions.

More than five women shared similar experiences of sexual harassment and abuse by armed men with the ICIR even as men in the community shared other forms of violent experiences on the road.

“Some months ago, I was coming back from Ganawuri market to sell my farm produce when some assailants struck my forehead with a machete and took the proceeds I made from the market”, says Matthew Mwantep, adding: “Two weeks ago, a 59-year-old man was brutally attacked with his wife on the same road.”

Mwantep, an irrigation farmer, said the armed men took over N350,000 and his phone.

The leader of the Community Police and Hunters Association in the area, Bitrus Dachung, confirmed the frequent attacks on residents, including the theft of money and phones. 

He said efforts have been made to alert the broader security network in Ganawuri. 

“We’re doing our best, but one of our biggest challenges is that we’re not armed, so our efforts are limited,” he said. “Just a few months ago, we caught a group of young men hiding in a cave along the road leading to this area and handed them over to the police.”

The councillor of the ward also confirmed the frequent attacks on the community’s residents, explaining that this was the reason he proposed the renovation of the police outpost.

Sarah a mother of four, and other women who spoke to the ICIR shared how their children, who are teenagers have quit secondary school because of the attacks on school children.

“It’s heartbreaking to watch my children miss out on school because of distance and facing constant danger along the way. This year, two teenage girls were raped on their way back from school,” Sarah said.

The community leader said that 90 per cent of children in the community do not attend school.

“We run the primary school in a church where all the children are gathered in one class. only two teachers come at least three days in a week, and the nearest secondary school is in Ganawuri,” he explained.

The residents of Danuwal community represent about 30 million Nigerians living in near isolation and lacking access to social services according to a report by World Bank.

Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development is responsible for the Rural Travel and Transport Programme (RTTP)  in the country through the Federal Project Management Unit and Rural Access and Mobility Project, however communities like Danuwal are still left behind. 

After weeks of unanswered calls, WhatsApp, and direct messages, The ICIR finally reached the Riyom LGA Chairman, Sati Bature Shuwa, on Wednesday, April 30. 

He requested to be called back for a proper interview but as of the time of filing this report, he neither answered subsequent calls nor responded to messages.

Names marked with an asterisk have been changed or shortened – single name – to protect the identities of the sources.