Nigeria working with Mali, Niger, Burkina Faso to fight cross-border insecurity – CDS Musa 

…advocates enhanced security management through strengthened institutions 

The Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) of the Armed Forces of Nigeria, General Christopher Musa, on Thursday, said Nigeria is collaborating with the military of Niger Republic, Burkina Faso and Mali to strengthen the fight against transnational security threats in the sub-region.

Gen. Musa stated that the nature of interconnected nations has made it imperative to collaborate and strengthen partnerships beyond borders.

He said this at the 2nd Distinguished Personality Lecture organised by the TETFUND Centre of Excellence in Security Management (TECESM), University of Ibadan and held at the Trenchard Hall.

Dignitaries at the lecture included heads and personnel of security agencies, political actors and students, among others.

In a lecture entitled “Global Fragility and Security Management in Nigeria,” General Musa noted that the world has been marked by unprecedented instability brought by terrorism, climate change, economic disparities, cyber threats and geographical tensions.

Identifying porous borders as one of the problems contributing to insecurity in the country, General Musa reiterated his call on Nigeria to fence strategic border areas to enhance security management and reduce vulnerability.

According to him, “politically, the three countries of Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso may have exited but militarily, we still work together because we understand that we must work together and collaborate to protect one another. And politically, we must reach out to them because if we don’t help them to stand strong, the effect will come on us.”

He also stressed the need to strengthen institutions to enhance security management and address the challenges posed by global fragility.

He spoke on the need to also reinforce democratic structures that would promote accountability, public trust and political stability, in addition to an effective judicial system that would help expedite justice and ensure closure for victims. 

The CDS enumerated some of the challenges facing security management in Nigeria to include porous borders, weak governance in remote areas, and external influences.

On porous borders, he said that the nation shares over 4,000 kilometres of land borders with her neighbours, most of which are inadequately secured and have been major conduits for the inflow of arms from conflict zones in the Sahel and North Africa, with an estimated 40 percent of the illegal arms entering West Africa ending up in Nigeria.

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General Musa also stated that weak governance existing in the nation’s remote areas exacerbates the impact of global fragility.

He noted that poor infrastructure, understaffed security forces and weak administrative systems hinder effective policing and intelligence gathering, thereby allowing criminal and terrorist networks to thrive.

Continuing on suggested paths forward, he said that civil institutions should be empowered to promote dialogue and reconciliation in order to foster social cohesion.

He advised on collaboration with global partners and regional allies to enable intelligence sharing, joint surveillance and operational synergy.

The Chief of Defence Staff also spoke on economic empowerment which, according to him, is essential for improvement to Nigeria’s security management.

In his opening remarks, the chairman of the event, Lt. General Tukur Yusuf Buratai (rtd), represented by Lt. Gen. Lamidi Adeosun (rtd), said that the issue of security management, which is focused on by TECESM, could not have come at a more critical time than the present time when Nigeria is facing complex security challenges, including terrorism, banditry, kidnapping and several other organised crimes.

Gen. Buratai encouraged TECESM to invest more in training, equipment and capacity building for security forces to enhance their their effectiveness and professionalism.

He added the need to strengthen border security through innovative solutions and trained personnel that would control the flow of illicit goods and prevent proliferation of arms aimed at destabilising the nation.

The Vice-Chancellor of the University of Ibadan, Prof. Kayode Adebowale, while welcoming General Musa and other guests, emphasised that the challenges being faced by Nigeria need to be tackled with evidence -based strategies anchored in research, community engagement and systemic resilience.

The Vice-Chancellor assured on UI’s commitment to advancing security scholarship through TECESM spearheading policy-relevant research on conflict resolution, intelligence analytics and peace building.

He added that the varsity’s Institute for Peace and Strategic Studies would also be leveraged to address the root causes of fragility.

The Acting Director of TECESM, Dr Benjamin Aluko, in his remarks, said that the centre would deploy all the weapons in its “intellectual arsenal” to support the Vice-Chancellor in achieving his mandate for the university.

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