Abuja: The Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lt.-Gen. Waidi Shaibu, announced that the Nigerian Army has adopted a flexible, intelligence-driven and technology-enabled approach to confront Nigeria’s evolving asymmetric threats. Shaibu made this statement in Abuja while delivering a lecture titled ‘Combating Asymmetric Threats to National Security in Nigeria: The Nigerian Army in Perspective’, to the participants of Course 34 at the National Defence College Nigeria.
According to News Agency of Nigeria, the COAS emphasized that global security dynamics have shifted from conventional inter-state wars to complex intra-state conflicts driven by non-state actors, terrorism, cybercrime, trafficking, and transnational organized crime. The army’s response includes a combination of kinetic operations, intelligence fusion, joint efforts with sister services, and collaboration with both domestic and international partners.
Shaibu noted that asymmetric threats exploit vulnerabilities and target civilians, institutions, and critical infrastructure. Therefore, the response must be adaptive, multi-domain, and collaborative. He further stated that Nigeria’s security environment mirrors global volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity, and highlighted that the army has retooled doctrine and operations to match the evolving threats.
The COAS detailed that advanced capabilities, including unmanned aerial platforms, improved training, and joint operations, have strengthened detection, interdiction, and response efforts. Reviewing operations across geo-political zones, Shaibu reported that sustained campaigns in the North-East have degraded insurgent networks through population-centric counterinsurgency and regional cooperation.
He explained that theatre-wide operations in the North-West are dismantling bandit enclaves and restoring freedom of movement. In the North-Central, the army’s posture focuses on area domination, protection of civilians, and stabilization of communal flashpoints through long-term joint task force frameworks. Shaibu underscored that national security has now transcended battlefield defense, encompassing economic resilience, cyber protection, environmental safety, and human security.
He urged the participants, described as Nigeria’s future strategic leaders, to embrace whole-of-government solutions that address the root causes of insecurity alongside military action. Shaibu emphasized that sustaining gains requires governance, justice, development, and community trust to complement military success.
The COAS reaffirmed the army’s unwavering commitment to safeguarding Nigeria’s sovereignty, protecting the citizens, and securing all critical national assets as threats continue to evolve.