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Nigeria advised to forge alliance with sahel states to stem jihadist expansion

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Nigeria advised to forge alliance with sahel states to stem jihadist expansion

By: Zagazola Makama

Security analyst and counterinsurgency expert, Zagazola Makama, has called on Nigeria to urgently forge a practical and trust-based alliance with the Alliance of Sahel States (AES) to halt the rapid expansion of jihadist networks from the Greater Sahel into littoral West Africa.

Makama, known for his authoritative insights on Lake Chad and Sahel security dynamics, made the call in an advisory released on Tuesday. He emphasised that the recent surge in jihadist activities particularly by Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM) and Islamic State Sahel Province (ISSP) now poses a direct threat to Nigeria and its neighbours along the Atlantic coast.

According to him, this rising tide of extremism demands a unified response that transcends political divides, ideological alignments, and historical grievances.

Nigeria must lead the charge

Makama urged Nigeria to take the lead in initiating a regional counterterrorism alliance involving AES members Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger as well as neighbouring states like Chad, Central African Republic (CAR), Sudan, and Libya.

He said Nigeria’s experience in fighting Boko Haram and ISWAP, its strong military assets, and its leadership role in ECOWAS position it as a natural leader in this proposed coalition.

“The threat is no longer confined to the Sahel. Jihadist groups are pushing southward with clear intent to destabilise littoral states such as Ghana, Togo, and Benin. Nigeria is the buffer, and if Nigeria is overwhelmed, the entire subregion could unravel,” Makama warned.

He advised President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, in his capacity as ECOWAS Chairman, to convene a summit with AES leaders Capt. Ibrahim Traoré of Burkina Faso, Col. Assimi Goïta of Mali, and Gen. Abdourahamane Tiani of Niger.

“Let Nigeria rise above politics and take the initiative. A united African front is the only way to roll back the tide of extremism in the region,” he added.

Security collaboration and intelligence sharing

Makama recommended the creation of a joint regional intelligence platform that would allow real-time sharing of information on jihadist movements, recruitment cells, and financing.

He called for a regional military alliance capable of launching cross border operations against terror enclaves in the Liptako-Gourma triangle and along the Nigeria-Niger border where ISSP is recruiting among Fulani youths under its “Lakurawa” network. Nigeria has the air power, AES has the ground knowledge. Coordinated, precision-led strikes are possible if trust is built and maintained,” he said.

Tackling the roots of terror

Beyond kinetic responses, Makama stressed the need for socio-economic interventions to address the root causes of radicalisation. He proposed joint investment in agriculture, road infrastructure, youth employment schemes, and cross-border trade corridors.

He also urged Nigeria to support AES countries with agricultural technology and capacity-building to reduce rural poverty and food insecurity conditions often exploited by jihadist groups. “An idle young man in Gao or Tillaberi is the perfect prey for terrorists. Development is as important as the gun in this war,” he said.

Border control and propaganda warfare

To contain the spread of jihadists and arms across porous frontiers, Makama advised the deployment of drones, surveillance systems, and joint patrols. He further proposed expanding Nigeria’s current border security framework in the Lake Chad Basin to cover AES border zones.

Makama also urged Nigeria to share the successes and methodologies of its deradicalisation programme, Operation Safe Corridor, with AES states.

“Jihadists use narratives to recruit and hold territory. We must counter them with stronger narratives ones rooted in culture, faith, and community resilience,” he noted.

Bringing in CAR, Sudan and Libya

Makama said the conflicts in Libya, Sudan, and CAR continue to fuel instability in the Sahel, as they serve as arms depots and transit points for fighters. He called for Nigeria and AES to extend their security coordination to these countries, using platforms such as the African Union and ECCAS.

He suggested engaging the Libyan National Army (LNA) in the east and western government factions separately, while also advocating for the inclusion of a Sahel-specific security agenda in AU-led peace talks on Sudan.

Neutrality and trust-building

Makama acknowledged the current mistrust between AES and ECOWAS, and the geopolitical divergence between Nigeria’s Western alliances and AES’s turn toward Russia. He proposed Togo and Senegal as neutral mediators in convening the proposed summit.

He commended Nigeria’s new visa-free policy for Africans as a step toward soft power diplomacy and urged for inter-community dialogue among Fulani, Tuareg, and Hausa groups to reduce ethnic tensions fueling extremism.

“Our cultures connect us. Our borders divide us. We must return to our shared African identity and fight together,” Makama said.

“We are running out of time. The jihadists are adapting, expanding, and exploiting every gap. If we don’t build a continental firewall today, we will be fighting fires on the Atlantic coast tomorrow.”

He called on Nigerian leadership to rise above regional politics and act decisively in shaping a continental security response capable of restoring peace, order, and development in the Sahel and beyond.

By bridging the Sahel and coastal states through collaboration, trust, and mutual interest, Nigeria and its neighbours can stem the tide of extremist violence threatening regional stability.

Zagazola Makama is a Counter Insurgency Expert and Security Analyst in the Lake Chad Region

Nigeria advised to forge alliance with sahel states to stem jihadist expansion

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Chairman Amana Farmers urges the government to provide modern farming technology in Yobe

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Chairman Amana Farmers urges the government to provide modern farming technology in Yobe

By: Yahaya Wakili

The new chairman of the Amana Farmers and Grains Suppliers Association of Nigeria (AFGSAN), Yobe State chapter, Alhaji Umar Adam Mamudo, has called on the Yobe State government to provide modern farming technology implements to farmers in the state in order to boost the agricultural activities as well as to produce more food security in the state.

The chairman disclosed this to newsmen in Damaturu. He said, “For now, I will try to make some necessary introductions to some government parastatals so that the association will be well known in the state, and I promise to make some changes in the association with a view to moving the association forward.”

He commended His Excellency, Governor Mai Mala Buni, CON, for the purchases and distributions of the multi-billion naira agricultural empowerment implements to farmers last year. These, he said, have encouraged many people to engage fully in farming activities in the state, adding that these efforts of His Excellency have also stimulated economic growth in the state as well as produced enough food security in Yobe State and Nigeria as a whole.

Mamudo revealed that the association is a combination of farmers and those that deal with grains, and we are also farmers and aggregators, and we know farmers very well—more than anybody—because we are the ones that buy from the farmers either in the market or in the farm or store outside the market.

“Sometimes the government used to give some assistance to farmers, but that assistance most of the time did not go to the real farmers directly; it used to go to some politicians, but I, as a grain dealer, and my colleagues, we know those that are the genuine farmers, the ones that are expected to receive that assistance from the government in order to boost their agricultural activities,” Mamudo said.

“But the way things are going, sometimes when you hear that there is some assistance related to agricultural activities, when you go there, many women and youths, most of whom are not farmers, will collect it and sell it immediately. We are not content with that kind of habit. That is why this is among the plans that I am trying to see how I can go over it.

“Once the association is well known to the government, I know the government will contact us before providing such assistance to the farmers, and we can try our best and put it in the right way, especially by giving it to the genuine farmers, and call on the state government to use how it can boost agricultural activities in the state.

He said, “Although we serve as advisers to the farmers, because most of the time farmers used to contact us about some new seeds or other things that came to them, we give them advice related to any new technology that comes into the farming activities.”

The chairman called on the farmers whenever a new innovation was developed to let them use it in the right way, because without having good advice or following the right guidelines, some of this new innovation, if the farmers did not use it in the right way, would end in loss instead of profit. Farming activities are like agribusiness; most of the farmers are doing it for business, not only for consumption.

Mamudo urged its members, either farmers or grain aggregators, to come together so that we can see how we can make our daily activities in farming and in the grain business perfect, so I solicit their contributions, support, and cooperation to move the association forward.

Chairman Amana Farmers urges the government to provide modern farming technology in Yobe

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Bagare calls on APC supporters to continue to give support for the party in Yobe

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Bagare calls on APC supporters to continue to give support for the party in Yobe

By: Yahaya Wakili

The All Progressives Congress (APC) chairman stakeholder of Nangere local government area of Yobe state, Alhaji Aliyu Saleh Bagare, the Madakin Tikau, has called on the party supporters in the area to always continue to support the party.

Alhaji Aliyu Saleh Bagare, who is also the former Deputy Governor of Yobe State, started this when the former APC leaders of 11 wards in Nangere local government area paid him a Sallah homage in his residence at Potiskum.

He said, “His Excellency, Governor Mai Mala Buni, CON, and the state party chairman and other party executives are not in Nigeria; they were in Saudi Arabia to perform hajj, and I assure them that as soon as they return, they will sit down and discuss their problems.”

Also speaking at the occasion, the state party executive, Alhaji Abdu Dagazurwa (alias Abdu Visual), assured the former party leaders to be patient; very soon things will be normalized, Inshallah.

He maintained that the All Progressives Congress (APC) is the party that everybody is rushing to join because of its justice and honesty in governance.

Earlier, speaking, the former chairman of Chillariye ward, Malam Umaru Muhammed, said they were at the residence of the chairman stakeholder to pay him a Sallah homage. He said, since they left the leadership of the party, they are still supporting the party 100%.

The chairman stakeholder of APC Nangere local government area, Alhaji Aliyu Saleh Bagare, also received a strong long-term member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Sule Dan Ladi, who shifted his loyalty to APC. 

Bagare assures him that the door of the APC is always open to everybody who is willing to join the party, and they will carry everybody along like the member of the party before.

Bagare calls on APC supporters to continue to give support for the party in Yobe

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Bandits kill three community protection guards in Zamfara ambush

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Bandits kill three community protection guards in Zamfara ambush

By: Zagazola Makama

Armed bandits on Monday ambushed and killed three members of the Community Protection Guards (CPG) in Tungar Arna bush, Wanke District of Gusau Local Government Area, Zamfara State.

Zagazola Makama was informed by reliable sources that the incident occurred at about 1300hrs when the CPG team attached to a local mining site in Wanke District was ambushed by unknown armed bandits.

“Three CPG members were shot dead during the attack. The victims have been identified as Lawali Furniture, Abdullahi Mohammed, and Umar Salisu Bakinwa.

Security forces have intensified efforts to track down the attackers

Bandits kill three community protection guards in Zamfara ambush

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