Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has asked the Nigerian government to seek assistance from the international community in addressing the country’s security challenges, arguing that the crisis has gone beyond what regional efforts can resolve.
Mr Obasanjo, who served as Nigeria’s military head of state from 1976 to 1979, and later as elected president from 1999 to 2007, maintained that there is nothing shameful about requesting global support when the government has shown incapacity to sufficiently tackle the threats.
He spoke on Sunday as a guest at The Toyin Falola Interviews held via Zoom, titled, “A Conversation with His Excellency, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, GCFR, Former President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”
Mr Falola, a professor, moderated the event
Among the interviewees were the founder of the Kukah Centre, Matthew Kukah, and former presidential candidate, Kingsley Moghalu.
“When you take it South-east, South-west, North-east, we have issues of security nationally and let us appeal to our government to say look, ‘this is a national issue and please help us and do the right thing.’ Or like I said, if our government is incapable, let us ask the international community. We are part and parcel of the global community, and there’s nothing wrong with that. The global community has an interest in our existence and peaceful existence,” Mr Obasanjo said.
The former president submitted that insecurity affects every region and warned against excluding any part of the country from efforts to restore peace.
“For that, I will say we have beaten the issue of security enough, but it’s a national issue. No part of the country should be left out when you talk of security,” he added.
Mr Obasanjo’s view comes as Nigeria and the United States are discussing ways of working together on security matters.
Nigeria’s deepening insecurity challenges
Nigeria’s insecurity challenges originated from multiple conflicts that emerged in the early 2000s and intensified after 2009.
An Islamist sect that is popularly known as Boko Haram was founded in Maiduguri in 2002 and, after its leader died in custody in 2009, transformed into a violent insurgency that attacked security forces, public institutions and civilians across the North-east. That insurgency set the template for protracted violence, mass displacement, brutal tactics and widespread destruction.
The conflict soon fragmented into rival jihadi factions, including groups aligned with the Islamic State, which staged suicide bombings, territorial incursions, and abductions, particularly of schoolchildren. These attacks deepened humanitarian crises and eroded state authority across the region. Government offensives often triggered further retaliatory violence and displacement.
In the North-west and parts of the North-central, another major threat that emerged was banditry. Unlike Boko Haram, these groups are largely criminal rather than ideological. Originating from cattle rustling and rural banditry, they evolved into highly organised networks involved in mass kidnappings, extortion, and the trading of ammunition.
Operating from dense forest hideouts and border areas, the bandits exploit weak governance, the booming ransom industry, and porous trafficking routes. Their tactics include village raids, highway ambushes and the mass abduction of civilians.
Kidnapping for ransom has since become one of the most alarming indicators of Nigeria’s security collapse. Estimates from officials and security specialists point to millions of incidents over short periods, along with a sharp rise in coordinated mass kidnappings of students between 2023 and 2024. The human toll continues to mount.
Governance failures, rising poverty, environmental pressures, and the proliferation of small arms drive the escalation of these threats. These threats have strained Nigeria’s military and compelled the government to repeatedly declare security emergencies and reorganise military deployments.
Local Solutions: Intelligence, Training, Technology
Speaking on domestic strategies for combating insecurity, Mr Obasanjo emphasised the need for properly harnessed intelligence, improved training for security personnel, adequate military equipment, and modern technology.
“When I talk about four things, intelligence, training, equipment and technology. I know what I’m talking about, and of course, when you get all these right, you must also get the attitude right that you really genuinely want to fight security,” he said.
The former president also suggested a mixed approach involving both force and dialogue.
“I have also maintained that in fighting, there will be an element of carrots and sticks, and we have mentioned it,” he added.
Rising out-of-school children
Mr Obasanjo warned that Nigeria’s increasing population of out-of-school children could become a major security threat in the future if left unaddressed.
“If we do not give our children education, then they are liable to become a problem in future, but in trying to give our children education, security becomes an issue. So, if we don’t deal with the issue of insecurity, we are compounding the problem because those children who do not go to school when they should go to school will become a liability and a greater problem of security for us,” he added.
