Language in the Face of COVID-19 and Insecurity in Nigeria

Abstract

In today's competitive world, every society is faced with different problems ranging from health, technology, resources, education, security wise etc. In Nigeria, the most pronounced challenge is insecurity. National security has been a challenging and disturbing issue in Nigeria. Several efforts have been made by government at all levels to provide effective and endearing security mechanisms, yet, the problem of national security has persisted. However, with the emergence of COVID-19 pandemic, the insurgency appeared with a new face and tenser than ever before. Historically, major events like natural disasters and war have proven to have big impacts on language. Since its advent, COVID- 19 has brought a totally new approach to people's life over the world and language has not been spared. While the threat of COVID-19 has triggered a serious global health concern, a great deal of the fear surrounding the disease is being fueled by widespread misinformation. The World Health Organization provides information which is primarily directed at member States, who are then tasked with localizing relevant information for their populations through their national health authorities. This paper therefore examines language in the face of COVID-19 pandemic and insecurity challenges in Nigeria. It highlights the communicative perspective of language as well as the role of language in the fight against COVID-19 and insecurity in Nigeria.