THE Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) has identified intelligence gaps, porous borders, illicit arms trafficking and the recruitment of vulnerable youths as major factors sustaining banditry in Nigeria, calling for stronger community participation and coordinated security operations to defeat the criminals.
News Point Nigeria reports that the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, also warned that military operations alone would not deliver sustainable peace without effective intelligence gathering, public trust, economic recovery and the restoration of government presence in communities liberated from armed groups.
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Ribadu, who was represented by the Director of Legal Services in his office, Barrister Zakari Usman Mijinyawa, stated this in a keynote address at a brainstorming session on coping with banditry organised by the Sokoto Advancement Forum (SAF), in collaboration with the Centre for Peace Studies, Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto, on Saturday.
The forum brought together security officials, traditional rulers, academics, government representatives and civil society groups to develop practical solutions to the persistent insecurity affecting communities across Sokoto State.
Ribadu said banditry had evolved beyond cattle rustling, highway robbery and kidnapping to include territorial control, unlawful taxation of rural communities and the disruption of economic activities.
He said the emergence of Lakurawa, which the Federal Government has designated as a terrorist organisation, underscored the growing connection between local criminal activities and transnational extremist networks operating across the Sahel.
“Sokoto’s proximity to the Republic of Niger and the wider Sahel adds a significant cross-border dimension to this challenge,” he said.
“We must therefore combine intelligence-led operations, effective border management, regional cooperation and sustained action against the supply of illicit weapons and other logistical support.”
The NSA stressed that military operations alone would not deliver sustainable peace without effective intelligence gathering, public trust, economic recovery and the restoration of government presence in communities liberated from armed groups.
He said security agencies must also distinguish hardened criminals from vulnerable individuals susceptible to recruitment, while ensuring that any rehabilitation or reintegration programme complied with Nigerian law and did not undermine justice for victims.
In his opening remarks, the Chairman of the Sokoto Advancement Forum, Prof. Muhammad Ahmad Wali, said the scale of insecurity required urgent action, warning that banditry was threatening the lives, livelihoods, education and economic activities of residents.
Wali, a former senior officer in the Security Division of the Cabinet Office in Sokoto, said the state had enjoyed relative peace in the 1980s and 1990s, allowing agriculture, trade and education to flourish.
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He lamented that the situation had deteriorated, with attacks and abductions forcing families from their homes and keeping farmers away from their fields.
“Today, the picture is painfully different. Banditry, kidnapping and attacks on farming villages have driven families from their homes, and now threaten our lives, our livelihoods, our children’s education, our trade and the authority of government itself,” he said.
Wali disclosed that attacks had been recorded in 21 of Sokoto’s 23 local government areas, citing figures indicating that more than 1,100 people were kidnapped in the state in the 12 months leading to June 2026.
He also recalled the killing of the Emir of Gobir in 2024 as an example of the threat posed by armed groups to traditional institutions and community leadership.
In his keynote address, Ribadu outlined five priority areas for tackling insecurity: denying criminal groups safe havens, strengthening intelligence and early warning, building community trust, restoring agriculture and rural livelihoods, and preventing the recruitment of young people into armed groups.
He said security agencies needed to improve information-sharing and establish effective reporting channels linking communities with local authorities and security personnel.
He specifically identified Sabon Birni, Isa, Tangaza and Goronyo as areas where early-warning arrangements should ensure that reports from vulnerable communities reach the appropriate authorities promptly.
“Timely intelligence saves lives when it reaches the right authorities and triggers an effective response,” he said.
He added that communities providing credible information must have confidence that authorities would act on it, while security agencies must protect sensitive operational details.
Ribadu also emphasised the importance of protecting farms, markets, schools, health facilities and rural transport routes, arguing that security should be measured by improvements in people’s daily lives rather than operational statistics alone.
“We must measure progress by more than arrests, weapons recovered or territory cleared,” he said.
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“Success must also mean safer communities, returning families, productive farms, reopened schools, functioning markets and the restoration of public confidence.”
The NSA commended ongoing security efforts, including Operation FANSAN YAMMA, and called for stronger coordination among the military, police, intelligence services, civil defence personnel and other authorised security actors.
