Barbara Bako, Abuja.
The Honourable Minister of Defence, General Christopher Gwabin Musa (rtd), has called for an agile, forward-looking and technology-driven defence architecture to enable Nigeria effectively respond to the country’s increasingly complex and evolving security threats.
Speaking at the 2nd Saban Policy Colloquium 2026 held in Abuja on Thursday, Musa said Nigeria’s security environment now demands renewed strategic thinking, institutional adaptation and sustained national commitment as threats continue to evolve across land, maritime, air and cyber domains.
“Our security environment now demands renewed strategic thinking, institutional adaptation and sustained national commitment. Our defence strategy must anticipate threats rather than merely react to them,” he said.
According to the minister, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration has reaffirmed its commitment to strengthening national security by modernising the Armed Forces and equipping them with the capabilities required to protect Nigeria’s sovereignty, democratic institutions and national development.
He noted that addressing contemporary security challenges requires stronger intelligence coordination, joint military operations and greater interoperability among the Armed Forces and other security agencies.
Musa stressed that emerging technologies including artificial intelligence, cyber capabilities, unmanned systems, surveillance and reconnaissance technologies are rapidly transforming military operations across the world.
“We must invest in these technologies while strengthening the human, doctrinal and institutional capacity needed to deploy them effectively,” he said.
He also underscored the importance of developing Nigeria’s defence industrial base, saying technological advancement is essential to maintaining operational advantage and preparing the military for future security challenges.
Earlier in her opening remarks, Leah Katung Babatunde, Special Adviser on Media to the Honourable Minister of Defence, described the colloquium as coming at a defining moment in Nigeria’s history when the meaning of sovereignty has expanded beyond physical borders.
She said the country’s sovereign frontier now stretches into cyberspace, satellite networks, automated systems, artificial intelligence and digital information ecosystems that sustain public trust and democratic governance.
Babatunde explained that the colloquium was conceived as a rigorous, non-partisan platform bringing together defence strategists, policymakers, technologists, academics, civil society leaders and the media to develop practical policy solutions for Nigeria’s emerging security challenges.
Delivering the keynote policy presentation, Prof. Muhammed Tawfiq Ladan of the National Institute for Legislative and Democratic Studies said Nigeria must redefine national security by integrating technology, intelligence, legal frameworks and democratic accountability into a unified defence strategy.
Ladan argued that protecting Nigeria’s sovereign frontier now requires securing both physical territory and digital infrastructure against cyberattacks, disinformation campaigns and other emerging threats.
“Stronger cybersecurity governance, indigenous defence technology development, inter-agency collaboration and transparent oversight are essential to ensuring that security measures do not undermine constitutional freedoms,” he said.
The 2026 Saban Policy Colloquium, themed “Securing the Sovereign Frontier: Strategic Defence Architecture, Emerging Technologies and Democratic Integrity in Nigeria,” brought together stakeholders from the defence, policy, technology and media sectors to chart pathways for strengthening Nigeria’s national security and democratic resilience in an increasingly digital world.
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