Nigeria’s former Minister of External Affairs and former permanent representative to the United Nations (UN), Prof. Ibrahim Gambari, said there were over 1,000 insurgent groups operating within the African continent.
He stated this in a goodwill message at the African Chiefs of Defence Staff Summit 2025 with the theme “combating contemporary threats to regional peace and security in Africa: the role of strategic defence collaboration”, holding in Abuja.
LEADERSHIP reports that out of 54 African countries, 36 were represented at the summit.
While Niger Republic representative honoured the invitation, Mali and Burkina Faso were conspicuously absent.
Their absence may not be unconnected with the political tension between the countries and the regional bloc ECOWAS.
Gambari called on African nations to first secure their various nations before securing the region and continent at large.
According to Gambari, African nations must strengthen defence industries and own its technologies in an effort to address threats.
He further urged African nations to design and build own security architecture that guarantees human security.
“We have to first secure our countries before we can secure our regions and then the continent. Securing Nigeria has placed Nigeria at the forefront of securing the region and continent. There are over 1,000 insurgency groups operating in Africa,” he revealed.
The President of Economic Community of West Africa States (ECOWAS), Omar Alieu Touray, represented by ECOWAS commissioner for political affairs, peace and security, Ambassador Abdel-Fatau Musah, said the Sahel region accounted for 51 per cent of deaths in 2024.
He appealed to the United Nations to fund at least 75 per cent of Africa-led operations to counter terrorism.
Earlier, Nigeria’s Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Musa, in his welcome remarks, said the challenges bedeviling the continent defied borders, hence the need for collaborative efforts.
General Musa stressed the need for an Africa-led security architecture to secure it citizens.
He assured that the Nigerian Armed Forces were ready to work with their colleagues across borders to tame terrorism and other threats.
According to CDS Musa, the enemy is within, hence,”we must be the architect of our defence and security.”
