The Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lt.-Gen. Waidi Shaibu, has reaffirmed the military’s resolve to crush the rising wave of insurgency and banditry across Niger State and the rest of the federation.
Speaking on Tuesday at the opening of the 2026 Doctrine and Training Conference held at the Training and Doctrine Command (TRADOC) in Minna, Lt.-Gen. Shaibu emphasized that the Army is prepared to do “everything humanly possible” to restore security and protect law-abiding citizens.
A Mandate to Restore Peace
The COAS’s comments come at a critical time for Niger State, which has recently faced a spike in high-profile attacks. In late 2025, the state was rocked by the mass abduction of over 200 students and teachers from St. Mary’s School in the Agwara local government area, as well as recent weekend raids in the Kabe District that left dozens dead.
Lt.-Gen. Shaibu stated that his leadership is aggressively implementing a direct mandate from President Bola Tinubu to curtail these “dastardly attacks” and ensure that those responsible are brought to book.
“We will massively do more deployments across the country,” the COAS declared. “The President has directed that we ensure the recent waves of attacks in Niger and other parts of the country are curtailed. We are committed to achieving our goal of making Nigeria safer for all.”
High-Tech Warfare and Realistic Training
Central to the Army’s 2026 strategy is a shift toward technology-driven operations. Lt.-Gen. Shaibu highlighted that the military is increasingly leveraging Intelligence, Surveillance, Target Acquisition, and Reconnaissance (ISTAR) and cyber operations to combat a “changing and complex” security environment.
The 2026 conference, themed “Enhancing Nigerian Army Operational Outcomes Through Effective Training and Doctrine Implementation,” serves as a strategic review of the previous year’s successes and failures. The Army chief urged commanders to move toward more realistic training models, specifically citing Exercise ‘MUGUN BUGU’ as a hallmark of readiness that must now incorporate better countermeasures for Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) and the use of modern combat simulators.
Leadership and Experience
Lt.-Gen. Waidi Shaibu, who took over as the 25th Chief of Army Staff in late 2025, brings significant experience to the current crisis. A veteran of the Armour Corps and former Theatre Commander of Operation Hadin Kai in the North-East, Shaibu is known for a “mission-oriented” philosophy.
Earlier in the event, the Commander of TRADOC, Maj.-Gen. Peter Malla, noted that the conference marks the official commencement of the 2026 training year. He described TRADOC as the “intellectual backbone” of the Army, tasked with producing an “agile and forward-looking” force capable of addressing the hybrid threats posed by bandits and jihadist cells operating in the Northwest and North-central forests.
The five-day conference is expected to produce new tactical blueprints that will guide military operations throughout the 2026 calendar year.