From Molly Kilete, Abuja
The Chief of Naval Staff (CNS), Vice Admiral Emmanuel Ogalla, charged personnel of the Nigerian Navy to embrace homegrown technology and innovation to curb the insecurity bedevilling the country and protect the nation’s maritime domain.
The CNS said this has become necessary as the protection of the waterways from pirates, oil thieves, and other criminals would no longer require the usual deployment of troops, fleets and other logistics but more of technology and innovation.
He also said that the time has come for Nigeria to move beyond dependence on imported technologies and begin to develop mission-critical assets locally.
Vice Admiral Ogalla, who made the call at the opening of the Nigerian Navy Seminar on Research and Development, themed “Utilising Emerging Technology for Enhanced Operational Effectiveness”, in Abuja, listed radars, navigation systems, drones, secure communications gear and surveillance systems as areas where domestic research and production must be accelerated.
Represented by the Chief of Communication and Information Technology (Navy), Rear Admiral Hamza Kaoje, at the seminar, the CNS said the nation is in an era of asymmetric, fast-evolving threats where pirates, oil thieves, smugglers and insurgent groups are increasingly using unmanned platforms, encrypted communications and advanced navigation tools.
“The battle for maritime security will no longer be won by numerical strength or conventional platforms.
“It will be decided by who has superior innovation, intelligence, adaptability and technological sophistication.”
He said, “This is not about prestige; it is a matter of strategic necessity.
“Our long-term security demands solutions developed by Nigerian minds, tailored to Nigerian realities, and manufactured by Nigerian industries.”
The Navy chief, while noting that the Navy has recorded tremendous successes in the area of local shipbuilding through the Naval Dockyard Limited (NDL) and the Naval Shipyard Limited (NSL), however said there was room for improvement, just as he announced that the Navy has concluded plans to launch innovation hubs, hackathons and ideation labs across formations to harness the creativity of innovators in uniform.
To motivate officers and ratings of the Nigerian Navy, Ogalla said the Navy places a higher priority on welfare with the construction of new bases, barracks and support facilities.
He said, “R&D can no longer be treated as an academic exercise. It must be institutionalised as a core strategic asset, on par with personnel, weapons and logistics.”
He therefore called for whole-of-society support to make the vision a reality, appealing to lawmakers to provide policy and funding support, the private sector to partner in manufacturing and testing, and universities to help translate research into field-ready technologies.
In his welcome address, the Chief Transformation (Navy), Rear Admiral Monday Unurhiere, while noting that the impact of technological advancement on military operations was well documented and would remain topical for as long as conflicts persist in human society, said technology has no doubt shaped the outcomes of battles in favour of those who effectively harnessed it.
He said the two-day seminar is part of the Navy’s ongoing efforts to deepen its research ecosystem and accelerate the integration of emerging technologies into its operational doctrine.
He described the seminar as most appropriate, saying it is coming at a time when the Armed Forces of Nigeria were committed to eliminating the diverse threats to national security.
In his lecture, Air Vice Marshal Osichinaka Ubadike, a Professor of Aerospace Engineering, emphasised the need for more local initiatives and innovation while urging the services to look inwards and encourage the transfer of technology.
Ubadike, who said the place of research and development as well as innovation could not be overlooked in modern warfare, called for concerted effort on the part of the Nigerian Navy to enhance its ingenuity in UAV technology to aid its maritime operations.
