The Nigerian Army has reaffirmed its commitment to strategic leadership development and professional military education as senior officers graduate from the Leadership and Strategic Studies Course 4/26 at the Nigerian Army Resource Centre (NARC), Abuja.
The Deputy Chief of Training Army Courses, Brigadier General T. Ahmed, who represented the Chief of Training Army, Major General Valentine Okoro, at the graduation ceremony, commended NARC for its contribution to strengthening the intellectual capacity of the Army.
He congratulated the graduating officers and said their performance demonstrated the value of the training they had received.
He urged them to apply the knowledge and skills gained to their responsibilities across the Nigerian Army.
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He also conveyed the Chief of Training Army’s appreciation to the Director General and staff of NARC for supporting the Army’s professional development objectives.
The Director General of NARC, Major General James Myam (rtd.), emphasised integrity, critical thinking and strategic judgement as key elements of effective senior military leadership.
Myam illustrated the importance of integrity with the story of a Sudanese participant who was refunded one pound he had inadvertently overpaid during a course in Ireland.
He explained that the institution returned the money because it was not entitled to retain more than the correct fee.
According to him, the lesson demonstrated that integrity means doing what is right even when there is no external pressure to do so.
He said the 11-month programme, conducted in partnership with the Postgraduate School of the Nigerian Defence Academy, was established after Army Headquarters identified a training gap requiring higher professional and academic development for senior officers of the Direct Regular Commission.
Successful participants were awarded a Master’s Degree in Leadership and Strategic Studies by the Nigerian Defence Academy and a Fellowship in Leadership and Strategic Studies by NARC.
Myam said the programme was designed to enable officers to navigate contemporary security challenges, think critically, challenge assumptions and develop responses to complex problems.
He expressed confidence that the graduates would apply their knowledge to produce tangible, knowledge-driven outcomes in their formations and units.
Speaking on behalf of the graduating class, the Course Representative, Lieutenant Colonel Bolaji Oladejo, described the 45-week programme as demanding, enriching and transformative.
Oladejo said the graduates were emerging as better-informed senior officers with enhanced professional and academic knowledge to support their responsibilities within the Nigerian Army.
He appreciated the Centre’s leadership, faculty, resource persons, directors, study-tour institutions, support staff and families of the participants for contributing to the success of the programme.
He urged his colleagues to uphold the values acquired at NARC, work as team players and remain committed to strategy and policy research aimed at improving national security and development.
The graduation underscored the Nigerian Army’s efforts to strengthen its senior leadership through professional experience, academic education, integrity and strategic thinking.
