The European Union (EU) is set to provide €20 million in defence assistance to Nigeria to support the Armed Forces in tackling insecurity, Minister of Defence Christopher Musa has disclosed.
The assistance will be provided under the European Peace Facility, with an EU technical delegation expected to visit Abuja in November to agree on the modalities for its delivery.
The development was announced in a statement issued on Saturday by the minister’s aide, Leah Katung-Babatunde, following a meeting between Musa and the EU Ambassador to Nigeria and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), Gautier Mignot, in Abuja.
According to the statement, the meeting at the Ministry of Defence headquarters, Ship House, focused on key bilateral defence agreements and a review of security cooperation between Nigeria and the EU.
The discussions also centred on arrangements for the €20 million assistance to the Nigerian Armed Forces under the European Peace Facility.
Musa expressed appreciation to the EU for its continued support for Nigeria’s security efforts and reaffirmed the Federal Government’s commitment to protecting lives and property.
He said relative peace was gradually returning to the country through the efforts of the Armed Forces and other security agencies, but acknowledged that kidnapping along major highways and attacks on isolated communities remained serious security challenges.
The minister said the government was working to address the threats, adding that Nigeria was also expecting the delivery of 10 attack helicopters, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and other critical military equipment through efforts by President Bola Tinubu’s administration.
On regional security, Musa warned that the shrinking of Lake Chad, which supports more than 50 million people, remained a potential source of instability.
He stressed that denying terrorists access to operational bases on the islands of Lake Chad remained a priority for the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF), which operates across the Lake Chad Basin.
The minister also called for greater attention to victims of conflict under the Disarmament, Demobilisation and Reintegration programme, emphasising that affected military personnel should also receive support.
Earlier, Mignot commended Musa’s efforts to improve Nigeria’s security situation and invited him to a meeting of defence ministers scheduled to take place in Brussels later in the year.
The EU ambassador also praised a recent conference of former and serving MNJTF force commanders, attended by representatives of the African Union and the Lake Chad Basin Commission.
Mignot said the planned visit by the EU technical delegation to Abuja in November would help finalise arrangements for delivering the €20 million defence assistance.
The proposed support forms part of broader security cooperation between Nigeria and the EU as the country continues efforts to address terrorism, kidnapping and other security threats.