Stakeholders Demand Border Fencing, Inter-Agency Unity at 2025 BRAVE-IT National Security Breakfast Meeting
Stakeholders Demand Border Fencing, Inter-Agency Unity at 2025 BRAVE-IT National Security Breakfast Meeting
Stakeholders in Nigeria’s security architecture have called for urgent fencing of the country’s porous land borders, deeper inter-agency collaboration, and increased citizen cooperation as key steps toward ending kidnapping, insurgency, and terrorism in the country.
These resolutions were part of a 20-point communiqué issued at the end of the 2025 BRAVE-IT Breakfast Meeting on National Security, held in Abuja on July 10. The high-level forum, hosted at 3JS Hotel, Utako, was organised by BRAVE-IT in collaboration with the Defence Headquarters and the Kalthum Foundation for Peace.
Themed “Pathways to Inter-Agency Collaboration and Citizens Cooperation in the Fight Against Kidnapping, Insurgency and Terrorism in Nigeria”, the meeting drew participation from top security officials, lawmakers, traditional and religious leaders, youth representatives, academics, civil society organisations, the media, and other concerned stakeholders.
In the communiqué jointly signed by the National Coordinator of BRAVE-IT, Dr. AK Peters, and the Secretary, Mr. Philip Ikodor, participants lauded the efforts of the Nigerian Armed Forces and other security agencies, urging them to sustain their resilience and commitment.
They emphasised that inter-agency rivalry must end if Nigeria is to succeed in tackling security challenges.
“All forms of superiority complex and solo success among security agencies should be discouraged,” the communiqué noted.
The meeting also called for greater citizens’ involvement in security matters, describing it as a civic duty that must be emphasised for maximum national benefit.
“Youths must demonstrate necessary resilience to wade off bad elements from their communities,” the stakeholders said.
A key resolution of the meeting was the urgent need to secure Nigeria’s land borders, particularly in the northern axis, with participants advocating the commencement of border fencing to curb the influx of arms and militants.
On funding, while acknowledging President Bola Tinubu’s increased budgetary allocations to the Armed Forces, the forum insisted that more needs to be done to meet operational demands, especially in logistics and personnel recruitment.
Another major highlight of the meeting was the call for constitutional reform to give traditional rulers statutory roles, recognising them as the first line of intelligence in local communities.
Participants also decried extremist preaching and urged security agencies to act swiftly to prevent such messages from inciting unrest.
In a strong rebuke of media portrayals, the stakeholders warned against narratives that glorify terrorists while undermining the efforts of the military, warning that such reporting emboldens criminals and demoralises vulnerable communities.
Commending the establishment of the Nigerian Forest Security Service, the communiqué urged forest guards to be proactive in securing Nigeria’s ungoverned forest areas.
The stakeholders also hailed General Christopher Musa, Nigeria’s Chief of Defence Staff, for publishing his book “Taking a Stand Against Insurgency, Terrorism and Banditry in Nigeria”, recommending its inclusion in public and institutional libraries nationwide.
Furthermore, the meeting acknowledged the exemplary efforts of Governors Charles Soludo (Anambra), Hyacinth Alia (Benue), and Dikko Rada (Katsina) in supporting victims of terrorism and called on other state leaders to follow suit.
Participants also congratulated the Nigerian Navy and the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) for emerging as the 2024/2025 “Star Services of the Year” in the BRAVE-IT security scorecard.
To improve intelligence gathering, the meeting advocated for the protection of whistleblowers and recommended regular security meetings at the local government level to enhance grassroots collaboration.
Finally, the forum urged BRAVE-IT to consider holding regional editions of the Breakfast Meeting across Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones to address region-specific security challenges more effectively.
