Over 1,000 insurgency groups operating in Africa — Gambari

Former Minister of External Affairs and Nigeria’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Prof. Ibrahim Gambari,  has said more than 1,000 insurgency groups are currently operating across Africa, posing a grave threat to peace and security on the continent.

Gambari made the disclosure on Monday in Abuja while delivering a goodwill message at the African Chiefs of Defence Staff Summit 2025, themed “Combating contemporary threats to regional peace and security in Africa: the role of strategic defence collaboration.”

“We have to first secure our countries before we can secure our regions and then the continent,” Gambari said.

“Securing Nigeria has placed Nigeria at the forefront of securing the region and continent. There are over 1,000 insurgency groups operating in Africa.”

The diplomat urged African nations to strengthen their defence industries, develop indigenous technologies, and design a homegrown security architecture that guarantees human security.

Also speaking at the summit, ECOWAS President Omar Touray, represented by the Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace and Security, Amb. Abdel-Fatau Musah, said the Sahel accounted for 51 per cent of deaths linked to terrorism in 2024.

He appealed to the United Nations to shoulder at least 75 per cent of the funding for African-led counter-terrorism operations.

Nigeria’s Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), Gen. Christopher Musa, stressed that Africa’s security challenges transcend national borders, calling for stronger collaboration among armed forces.

“The enemy is within; hence, we must be the architect of our defence and security,” Musa said, while reaffirming the Nigerian Armed Forces’ commitment to working with counterparts across the continent to combat terrorism and other threats.

ALSO READ TOP STORIES FROM NIGERIAN TRIBUNE