Nigeria has called for stronger and sustained international partnerships to address the country’s evolving security challenges and wider threats confronting the Sahel region.
Christopher Musa, Minister of Defence, made the call at a side event held on the margins of the 81st United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) High-Level Week in New York.
The event, themed, ‘Confronting Nigeria’s Multidimensional Security Challenges: A Whole-of-Society and Partnership-Based Approach,’ brought together diplomats, security practitioners and representatives of the United Nations, African Union and Economic Community of West African States.
Musa said Nigeria’s security challenges had implications beyond its borders, requiring a coordinated response involving government institutions, communities, regional organisations and international partners.
He said the country’s recognition that it could not address the challenges alone should not be interpreted as dependence, but as an acknowledgement of the increasingly multidimensional nature of modern security threats.
‘Sustainable security requires resilient communities, effective institutions, inclusive development, and good governance,’ he said.
The minister outlined measures being implemented by the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to strengthen Nigeria’s security architecture.
These include the recruitment of an additional 22,000 personnel into the Armed Forces and the expansion and reorganisation of the Nigerian Army’s divisional structure.
He also highlighted ongoing efforts towards establishing state police and dedicated forest guard arrangements to improve the security of rural and border communities.
According to him, the government is also implementing a presidential approval for a unified intelligence and reconnaissance programme designed to eliminate operational silos among government agencies.
The programme, he said, would improve situational awareness and strengthen interoperability across Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs).
Musa further identified the strengthening of domestic defence production as another priority, noting that the government was supporting the Defence Industries Corporation of Nigeria (DICON) to enhance self-reliance and reduce dependence on external sources of military equipment.
He said Nigeria was also integrating advanced technologies into its security operations, including drones for real-time surveillance and improvised explosive device detection.
The minister also cited the rollout of a comprehensive national criminal database among measures being pursued by the government to strengthen the country’s security architecture.
According to a statement by Leah Katung-Babatunde SA (Media) to the Honourable Minister of Defence, discussions at the event extended beyond military responses, with participants examining intelligence, border security, economic stability, cybersecurity and community participation as components of a comprehensive national security strategy.
A panel moderated by Ibrahim Gambari, former Chief of Staff to the President, recalled Nigeria’s concentric-circles foreign policy and stressed the need for Africa to position itself as an active contributor to global frameworks, particularly in the area of artificial intelligence.
On homeland security and early warning, Adeyinka Famadewa, Special Adviser on Homeland Security, advocated the fusion of intelligence and integrated response capabilities.
He also called for systems that would protect citizens who report security threats, saying effective citizen reporting could contribute to the early identification and prevention of emerging threats.
Abdul Ibrahim, a former Force Commander of the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF), called for community-based approaches to border security.
He also urged the implementation of the Office of the National Security Adviser’s Border Management Strategy, revitalisation of the MNJTF and stronger efforts to target terrorist taxation and financial networks.
Kingsley Obiora, former Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, said economic stability remained a core pillar of national security.
He proposed the establishment of designated economic zones, drawing on Colombia’s experience, to stimulate business recovery in areas affected by conflict.
Mvemba Phezo Dizolele of Johns Hopkins University cautioned African countries against relying on external templates in addressing their security challenges.
He urged African countries to develop solutions that reflected their specific circumstances and were designed with and for local populations.
Omosigho Ozo-Eson, a cybersecurity expert, warned against excessive reliance on foreign artificial intelligence systems.
He stressed the need to protect Nigeria’s Critical National Infrastructure while developing indigenous cyber-defence capabilities.
In his closing remarks, Musa reaffirmed Nigeria’s commitment to combating terrorism and banditry and commended the country’s defence cooperation with international partners, including the United States.
He, however, stressed the need for greater African ownership of regional security mechanisms.
While acknowledging the support provided by international partners such as the European Union to mechanisms including the MNJTF, the minister said African member states needed to increasingly finance and sustain their own security frameworks.
According to him, greater domestic and regional financing would help guarantee ownership and sustainability of African-led security mechanisms.
Musa also highlighted government efforts to strengthen legal frameworks, protect vulnerable health workers operating in high-risk areas and create a stable business environment capable of attracting investment.
He said the objective of the discussions should go beyond reaffirming the nature of Nigeria’s security challenges to identifying concrete areas of cooperation and defining responsibilities and practical next steps.
‘Our objective should be straightforward. We should not merely reaffirm our understanding of the challenges; we should seek to identify concrete areas of cooperation, clear responsibilities, and practical next steps,’ he said.
Earlier, Bosede Olaniyi, Director in the Office of the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Defence, welcomed participants to the event and called for robust engagement capable of producing meaningful outcomes for national development.