Security and mapping professionals are urging closer collaboration between surveyors and Nigerian security forces to enhance efforts to locate and dismantle criminal hideouts, particularly in forested and hard‑to‑access regions where bandits and kidnappers are known to operate.
Experts argue that traditional survey techniques, coupled with modern technologies such as drone‑based mapping and geospatial intelligence, could help narrow search areas and provide actionable intelligence to military and law enforcement units.
According to proponents of the approach, properly mapped terrain data can reveal patterns of human activity that are invisible to conventional patrols alone, allowing troops to focus on credible hideout locations and reducing time and resources wasted on broad searches.
Surveyors say their equipment and technical expertise can produce high‑resolution mapping products that pinpoint likely criminal encampments, significantly enhancing operational planning and tactical decision‑making. They also note that advanced aerial drones equipped with specialized sensors can detect unusual concentrations of carbon dioxide, a signature of human presence, deep within forest areas.
Advocates are calling on the Federal Government to institutionalize the role of surveyors within security planning frameworks, arguing that intelligence‑led operations demand sophisticated geographic and spatial data to keep pace with evolving threats.
This push reflects broader efforts to modernize Nigeria’s security architecture by leveraging civilian technical capacities alongside military and police operations to more effectively address banditry, kidnapping, and other forms of violent crime rooted in remote terrain.
