The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the National Centre for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons (NCCSALW) have pledged to strengthen institutional collaboration and international cooperation to combat illicit arms trafficking and proliferation in Nigeria and the wider West African region.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, described illicit trafficking and the proliferation of small arms and light weapons as “serious threats to national security, regional stability and sustainable development.”
She made this known during a meeting with the Director-General of NCCSALW, Deputy Inspector-General of Police Johnson Babatunde Kokumo (rtd.), and his delegation in Abuja on Wednesday, October 21, 2026.
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According to the Ministry’s spokesperson, Oluwafemi Adeniyi, the minister acknowledged the strategic importance of the centre in coordinating national efforts to prevent and control the proliferation of illicit weapons.
Odumegwu-Ojukwu identified terrorism, banditry, kidnapping and communal violence as security challenges fuelled by the circulation of illegal weapons.
She emphasised the need to combat their circulation, including by addressing “cross-border arms trafficking, local artisanal production and the theft or diversion of weapons from government stockpiles.”
The minister said tackling these challenges was essential to protecting Nigerians, restoring livelihoods and creating the security required for investment and development.
Reaffirming Nigeria’s commitment to international arms-control frameworks, she highlighted the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Convention on Small Arms and Light Weapons, the African Union’s Silencing the GunGuns initiative, the Arms Trade Treaty and relevant United Nations instruments.
The minister called for stronger cross-border coordination in weapons tracing and intelligence sharing with neighbouring countries and international partners across the Sahel and Lake Chad Basin.
She also expressed optimism about the dialogue recently launched between ECOWAS and the Confederation of Sahel States (AES) in Dakar, Senegal, urging that “arms control and tracing cooperation be built into the framework that emerges from their ongoing engagement.”
On operational priorities, Odumegwu-Ojukwu emphasised the importance of coordination among relevant agencies to ensure effective weapons tracing, secure arms storage, timely investigations into weapons diversion and strengthened end-user verification.
She further encouraged public sensitisation involving traditional institutions, community leaders and women’s groups, while stressing the need to prevent youth recruitment into criminal networks and strengthen support for deradicalisation efforts.
The minister also pledged closer consultation with NCCSALW in preparing Nigeria’s positions for relevant international meetings.
Earlier, Deputy Inspector-General of Police Johnson Babatunde Kokumo (rtd.) outlined the centre’s mandate, identifying external sources, local artisanal production and the diversion of weapons from authorised government stockpiles as major causes of illicit arms proliferation.
The director-general acknowledged the ministry’s support for international training and engagements and requested enhanced diplomatic cooperation to strengthen the centre’s implementation of its mandate.
Both parties agreed on the importance of strengthened institutional collaboration, improved technical responses and coordinated diplomatic engagement in combating illicit arms trafficking and proliferation.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs reaffirmed its readiness to support NCCSALW through diplomatic engagement, enhanced international cooperation and sustained inter-agency coordination.
