Tinubu Orders National Threat Assessment, Five-Year Defence Plan

President Bola Tinubu has approved the immediate preparation of a comprehensive national threat assessment and a rolling five-year strategic defence operations plan to strengthen coordination among Nigeria’s defence, intelligence and security agencies.

The directive was announced on Wednesday following the Federal Executive Council meeting at the State House in Abuja.

Tinubu said the new framework would provide a clearer understanding of the threats facing the country, establish operational priorities and identify the capabilities required to address them.

He appointed the Special Adviser on Homeland Security, Major General Adeyinka Famadewa, to coordinate the 11-member committee responsible for preparing the strategic defence operations plan.

The committee includes the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu; Minister of Defence, Christopher Musa; Minister of State for Defence, Bello Muhammad Matawalle; Chief of Defence Staff, Olufemi Oluyede; Chief of Army Staff, Waidi Shaibu; Chief of Air Staff, Sunday Kelvin Aneke; and Chief of Naval Staff, Idi Abbas.

Also on the committee are the Director-General of the Department of State Services, Tosin Ajayi, and the Director-General of the National Intelligence Agency, Muhammed Muhammed.

According to the President, recent security operations, including the rescue of pupils and teachers abducted in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State, demonstrated the importance of stronger coordination and intelligence sharing among security agencies.

He noted that security requirements are often considered individually without sufficient reference to a unified national threat assessment or medium-term strategy. This, he said, makes coordination more difficult and can limit the effective deployment of resources.

The national threat assessment will identify the major threats confronting Nigeria, determine their urgency and establish objectives for tackling them.

The strategic defence operations plan will then translate those findings into operational priorities, including the forces and capabilities required, equipment and support needs, existing gaps and an implementation timetable.

Tinubu directed the committee to begin work immediately and submit the completed assessment and five-year plan within 90 days for his consideration and approval.

Once approved, the plan will serve as the principal framework for coordinating military and defence operations over the medium term and will guide a corresponding multi-year defence expenditure and procurement plan.