security
Nigeria Holds 40% of West Africa’s 500 Million Illegal Weapons, as CDS, Christopher Musa Warns of Grave Security Threat, Porous Borders and Rising Regional Fragility
Nigeria’s Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), General Christopher Musa, has sounded a grave alarm over the country’s growing exposure to global and regional insecurity, disclosing that Nigeria alone harbours about 40 per cent of the estimated 500 million illicit small arms and light weapons circulating across West Africa.
General Musa made the disclosure on Thursday while delivering a high-level lecture in Ibadan, Oyo State, where he linked the proliferation of illegal weapons to the worsening security situation confronting the nation, particularly in its northern regions.
According to the defence chief, the massive influx of illicit arms largely trafficked from conflict-ravaged areas in the Sahel and North Africa has significantly strengthened the operational capacity of terrorists, bandits and ethnic militias, thereby intensifying violence, instability and humanitarian crises across large swathes of the country.
The lecture was delivered at the second Distinguished Personality Lecture organised by the TETFund Centre of Excellence in Security Management at the University of Ibadan. The event, held at the institution’s historic Trenchard Hall, attracted academics, security experts, policymakers and students, all drawn to the urgent discourse on national and global security challenges.
General Musa described Nigeria’s internal security challenges as a reflection of a much broader global crisis marked by fragility, weak governance and the spillover of conflicts across borders.
“Over 500 million illicit small arms and light weapons are circulating in West Africa, and an estimated 40 per cent of these weapons end up in Nigeria. These weapons, often smuggled from conflict zones in the Sahel and North Africa, have empowered terrorists, bandits, and ethnic militias, escalating violence in Nigeria’s northern regions,” he said.
He further warned that Nigeria’s vast and porous borders, combined with the erosion of governance structures in many rural and border communities, have made the country increasingly vulnerable to transnational criminal networks and armed groups.
The CDS stressed that the implications of Nigeria’s security challenges go beyond its borders, posing serious risks to regional stability and global peace if not urgently and collectively addressed.
General Musa’s remarks underscore growing concerns within the security establishment over arms proliferation, cross-border criminality and the urgent need for stronger border management, regional cooperation and institutional reforms to stem the tide of insecurity threatening Africa’s most populous nation.