The equipment comprised non-lethal field-support items designed to enhance operational and humanitarian capabilities
By Moses Okorie
The Chief of the Naval Staff (CNS), Vice Adm. Idi Abbas, has called for stronger maritime cooperation among African countries to address the continent’s growing security challenges effectively.
Abbas made the call on Friday when he received the Chief of Staff, ECOWAS Standby Force, Brig.-Gen. Sheikh Massaquoi, who paid him a courtesy visit at the Naval Headquarters in Abuja.
The Director of Naval Information, Capt. Abiodun Folorunsho, disclosed this in a statement made available to journalists in Abuja.
The CNS urged more African militaries to participate in regional security initiatives, particularly the recently launched Combined Maritime Task Force-Gulf of Guinea (CMTF-GoG).
He said wider participation would enhance the collective capacity of African countries to confront transnational maritime threats and other emerging security challenges.
Abbas highlighted Nigeria’s contributions to regional security through maritime operations and strategic sealift capabilities.
He cited the recent transportation of Chinese-donated ECOWAS equipment to frontline countries, including Benin Republic and Sierra Leone, as an example of Nigeria’s role in supporting regional logistics and military mobility.
According to him, the equipment comprised non-lethal field-support items designed to enhance operational and humanitarian capabilities.
He also recalled the Nigerian Navy’s strategic sealift operation to Guinea-Bissau in 2022, when Nigerian Navy Ship KADA transported military equipment for Nigerian troops deployed under the ECOWAS Stabilisation Support Mission.
“The deployment demonstrated Nigeria’s ability to sealift maritime logistics in support of regional peace and security initiatives,” he said.
The naval chief advocated closer collaboration between the ECOWAS Standby Force and the CMTF-GoG, noting that contemporary security threats increasingly cut across land and maritime domains.
He said addressing such threats required shared intelligence, compatible capabilities and coordinated operations among regional forces.
Abbas therefore encouraged more African countries to join the CMTF-GoG, describing the initiative as an important component of a broader regional security architecture for combating transnational maritime crimes.
He equally called for the strengthening of the ECOWAS Standby Force to improve its operational readiness and capacity for rapid deployment against terrorism, insurgency and organised cross-border crime.
“As Africa’s security challenges become increasingly interconnected, no nation can confront them effectively in isolation,” he said.
He stressed that a coordinated regional approach built around intelligence sharing, interoperable forces, joint operations and sustained political commitment remained critical to safeguarding Africa’s people, resources and development.
In his remarks, Massaquoi conveyed the greetings of the ECOWAS Commission and acknowledged Nigeria’s significant contribution to regional security.
He expressed appreciation for the country’s continued support for ECOWAS initiatives and emphasised the need to strengthen the maritime component of the regional security architecture.
The engagement underscored the importance of regional interoperability and Nigeria’s strategic role in developing a responsive maritime security framework for the Gulf of Guinea and West Africa.