By ZAKAA Lazarus
The Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lt. Gen. Waidi Shaibu, has called for deeper regional security cooperation and stronger defence partnerships among ECOWAS member states to confront emerging threats in West Africa.
The Acting Director, Army Public Relations, Col. Appolonia Anele, disclosed this in a statement on Tuesday.
Anele said Shaibu made the call on Wednesday, 30 September 2026, when the Chief of Staff, ECOWAS Standby Force, Brig. Gen. Sheik Massaquoi, led a delegation on courtesy visit to Army Headquarters, Abuja.
The COAS said complex, interconnected and transnational threats such as terrorism, violent extremism and transnational organised crime cannot be tackled by individual nations in isolation.
“West African countries are stronger when they work collectively towards securing the subregion,” Shaibu said.
He urged military leaders to leverage collective expertise and shared understanding of the security environment to develop practical strategies and provide actionable advice to political leaders.
Shaibu stressed sustained military-to-military cooperation through regular dialogue, intelligence sharing, joint training and harmonisation of doctrines to improve interoperability and operational readiness.
He reaffirmed the Nigerian Army’s commitment to regional security obligations and support for initiatives strengthening the ECOWAS security architecture.
Earlier, Massaquoi thanked the Nigerian Army for its contributions to peacekeeping and regional security, stressing the need to make the ECOWAS Standby Force more proactive, interoperable and responsive.
He identified updated doctrines, enhanced joint exercises and stronger defence partnerships as critical, and solicited Nigeria’s continued support to enhance the Force’s operational effectiveness.
