Chairman, National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Retired Brig.-Gen. Buba Marwa, has declared that was currently grappling with a complex security landscape in different parts of the country.
Marwa made the observation at the Army War College Nigeria (AWCN) Course 10/2026 Interagency Seminar on Thursday in Abuja.
He said the threat was coming from insurgency and terrorism in the North East, farmer-herder conflicts in the North West and North Central, secessionist agitations in the South East, and organised crimes in the South South and South West, including drug trafficking and consumption.
He, therefore, called for the bridging of fundamental gaps in intelligence sharing as a critical step in addressing Nigeria’s security challenges.
Marwa emphasised the need for a whole-of-government and whole-of-society approach, saying that criminals are increasingly sophisticated, exploiting technology, government spaces, and transnational networks to perpetuate crime.
He said there was a link between drug trafficking and funding of other security threats, adding that tackling these issues requires integrated collaboration across all security stakeholders, including the armed forces, law enforcement, intelligence agencies, and civil society.
“The notion of security as purely a military or law enforcement concern is no longer sufficient.
“There must be stronger operational synergy among the Nigeria Police Force, the Department of State Security Services, NDLEA, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, Nigeria Immigration Service, and Nigeria Customs Service,” he said.
The seminar, themed “Enhancing Intelligence Sharing Across Nigeria’s Security Ecosystem: From Friction to Collaboration,” was described by Marwa as a platform to foster interagency cooperation and develop actionable strategies for a safer Nigeria.
In his lecture titled, “Bridging Intelligence Gaps Among Security Agencies for Enhanced National Security “, former Chief of Defence Intelligence, retired Maj.-Gen. Samuel Adebayo, warned that intelligence gaps among Nigeria’s security agencies remain a critical vulnerability in the nation’s security architecture.
Adebayo emphasised that intelligence goes beyond the traditional agencies such as the Police, Department of State Services, National Intelligence Agency, and Civil Defence, extending to correctional facilities, local communities, and even the public.
He noted that these gaps often result in delayed warnings, fragmented situational awareness, and incomplete threat assessments, which are frequently exploited by criminal networks, insurgents, and other non-state actors.
Earlier, the Commandant of AWCN, Maj.-Gen. Umar Alkali, welcomed the seminar’s participants, which included 100 officers from the Nigerian Army, Navy, Air Force, and allied forces from 10 African countries.
He said the participants also include 43 participants from Nigeria Police, NDLEA, DSS, and other federal agencies.
Alkali said the course was designed to equip participants with skills in inter-agency cooperation, strategic analysis, and national security management.
