‘Strategic Communications Key To Addressing Security Challenges’

Minister of state for defence Dr Bello Matawalle has said that strategic communication is key to addressing the country’s security challenges.

The minister stated this at the inaugural lecture and 2024 alumni engagement of the Institute of Strategic and Development Communications (ISDEVCOM) of the Nasarawa State University Keffi (NSUK) held in Keffi local government area of Nasarawa State.

Delivering the keynote address, the minister, who was the special guest at the occasion, said strategic communication is a continuous function that occurs across the full range of military operations and, therefore, key in the ongoing fight against terrorism, banditry and other threats in the country.

The minister, who was represented by his special adviser, Technical, Rear Admiral Atiku Abubakar (Rtd), noted that for Nigeria to progress quickly in security and development, there is a dire need to bridge the gap between scholarship and industry.

He explained that operations leaders should be able to communicate their goals and expectations and provide clear and timely feedback to their troops, pointing out that secure, resilient, and reliable communications are critical to mission success.

He commended the institute for its critical role in projecting and advocating the importance of strategic communications, which aim to break communication barriers in all facets of human endeavour.

Delivering the induction lecture on “Strategic Communication, National Security and Patrotism,” Mr Segun Adeniyi, a former Special Adviser to former President Umaru Yar’Adua on Media and Publicity, posited that strategic communications are what all Nigerians need, regardless of the field in which they operate, to curb insecurity challenges across the country.

He noted that strategic communications practitioners have a considerable role as objective information conveyors and honest agenda-setters.

In his remarks, Mallam Ali Mohammed Ali, managing director of News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) and chairman of the event, also applauded the institute’s alumni association for the topic, which he said was well thought out and succinct, given the insecurity challenges bedevilling the country.