Nigeria’s Chief of the Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Idi Abbas, has called for stronger regional military cooperation and greater African participation in efforts to tackle growing security threats across the continent.
Abbas made the call on Friday when he received the Chief of Staff of the ECOWAS Standby Force, Brigadier General Sheikh Sulaiman Massaquoi, during a courtesy visit to the Naval Headquarters in Abuja.
The Naval Chief stressed the need for broader participation in regional initiatives, including the Combined Maritime Task Force–Gulf of Guinea, noting that it would strengthen collective efforts against transnational threats.
“Broader regional participation would strengthen our collective capacity to respond to Africa’s security challenges.”
Abbas highlighted Nigeria’s growing contribution to regional security, particularly through maritime logistics and strategic sealift support.
He cited the recent movement of Chinese-donated ECOWAS equipment to frontline countries, including Benin Republic and Sierra Leone, as an example of Nigeria’s support for regional security operations.
The Naval Chief also recalled the Nigerian Navy’s strategic sealift of military hardware to Guinea-Bissau in 2022, when NNS KADA transported equipment for Nigerian troops deployed under the ECOWAS Stabilisation Support Mission.
Against this backdrop, Abbas called for stronger synergy between the ECOWAS Standby Force and the Combined Maritime Task Force–Gulf of Guinea.
“Maritime security challenges increasingly straddle both land and sea, requiring shared capabilities, information and coordinated responses.”
He urged more African countries to join the maritime task force, stressing that a broader regional security architecture would be better positioned to tackle terrorism, insurgency and organised cross-border crime.
The Naval Chief also called for the ECOWAS Standby Force to be strengthened and maintained at a high level of operational readiness for rapid deployment.
“No nation can confront these challenges effectively in isolation.”
He said the future of African security would depend on coordinated regional action anchored on shared intelligence, interoperable forces, joint operations and sustained political commitment.
Responding, Brigadier General Massaquoi conveyed greetings from the President of the ECOWAS Commission and acknowledged Nigeria’s significant role in regional security.
He expressed appreciation for Nigeria’s continued support for ECOWAS initiatives and underscored the need to strengthen the maritime component of the region’s security architecture.
The engagement reinforced Nigeria’s push for greater regional interoperability and broader African participation in securing the Gulf of Guinea and the wider West African sub-region.
