The Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC), in collaboration with Transparency International Defence and Security (TI-DS), today presented a press statement at the North-West Regional Press Conference held at Porto Golf Hotels in Kano, calling attention to the alarming state of Nigeria’s defence and security sector. The event was led by Jimoh Abubakar from the CISLAC Communications Department.

The press conference was organized to disseminate a policy brief titled “Nigeria’s Defence Sector: Persistent Corruption Risk Amidst Escalating Security Threats,” published by TI-DS in collaboration with CISLAC/Transparency International in Nigeria (TI-Nigeria).

The policy brief draws on the 2020 Government Defence Integrity Index (GDI), policy literature, news reports, and extensive analyses by CISLAC. It presents a comprehensive overview of systemic issues affecting defence governance in Nigeria and highlights the urgent need for institutional reforms.

Key Findings:
1. Nigeria’s defence and security sector is plagued with systemic corruption, a major hindrance to the effective provision of defence in a country facing serious security challenges.
2. Corruption enmeshes the ever-increasing defence sector expenditure and procurement – activities with little oversight and transparency mechanisms.
3. To remedy this, Nigeria’s defence institutions should prioritize transparency and access to information – with a focus on defence budgets and disaggregated expenditures.
4. Strengthening accountability and civilian oversight will be critical to building and sustaining effective institutional resilience in the country’s defence sector.

Key Observations from the Policy Brief

Nigeria’s defence and security sector is deeply entangled in systemic corruption, which continues to aggravate the country’s worsening security situation. The failure of state security forces to adequately protect local populations has led to a proliferation of self-defence militias and the increasing militarization of communities. As a result, the country’s capacity to address violent conflict is significantly undermined.

Corruption has long affected Nigeria’s public finances, business environment, and citizens’ quality of life. Nigeria ranked 145th out of 180 countries in the 2023 Transparency International Corruption Perception Index (CPI) and 140th in 2024, with a score of just 26 out of 100, indicating a high perception of public sector corruption.

A report by PricewaterhouseCoopers warns that corruption could cost Nigeria up to 37% of its GDP by 2030 if left unchecked. Despite some progress in reducing bribery since 2016, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) estimates that about 117 million bribes are still paid annually in Nigeria.

The policy brief highlights that Nigeria is experiencing a significant rise in insecurity, driven in part by the widespread availability of illicit weapons. In 2021, it was estimated that Nigeria housed approximately 70% of all illicit small arms in West Africa. This proliferation has fueled increasing rates of kidnapping, banditry, gender-based violence, killings, and other violent crimes across the country.

The northeast, a region at the heart of Nigeria’s counter-terrorism efforts, faces especially dire conditions. In the last 19 months alone, violent incidents have resulted in approximately 14,400 fatalities. Notably, Kaduna State alone accounted for 30% of militia-related violence in 2021, including cattle rustling, village attacks, and kidnapping for ransom. The armed forces are stretched thin, tasked with defending national borders while simultaneously addressing internal security threats.

As of 2023, Nigeria had approximately 135,000 active-duty personnel, which amounts to just 1.1 military personnel per 1,000 citizens. Soldiers are deployed on multiple fronts, including battling Boko Haram in the northeast, tackling banditry in the northwest, managing communal crises in the Middle Belt, and protecting oil assets in the Niger Delta and Gulf of Guinea. Reports of desertions and corruption in the supply of arms and protective equipment have further endangered frontline troops.

Between 2016 and 2022, Nigeria spent over US$19.9 billion on security, with the military budget rising from US$2.4 billion in 2020 to US$4.5 billion in 2021, and dropping slightly to US$3.2 billion in 2023. Despite this high expenditure, Nigeria remains the largest arms importer in sub-Saharan Africa, accounting for 16% of the region’s imports between 2019 and 2023. However, outcomes have been minimal, with investigations revealing that about US$15 billion was lost to fraudulent arms procurement over the past two decades. Most of these dealings remain hidden from public scrutiny.

The policy brief also points to a lack of fiscal accountability. The Excess Crude Account, established to stabilize government budgets during oil price fluctuations, was depleted under the Buhari administration, falling from US$2.1 billion in 2015 to just US$376,000 in 2022. In 2017, US$1 billion was withdrawn from this account for security purposes, but half of this amount remains unaccounted for, reportedly absorbed into opaque “security vote” expenditures.

Human rights abuses by state security forces further complicate the security landscape. These include civilian casualties from airstrikes and allegations of sexual and gender-based violence, particularly in northeastern Nigeria. Displaced women and girls are especially vulnerable, facing survival sex, trafficking, and other forms of abuse. Despite the establishment of the Presidential Investigation Panel in 2017, accountability remains elusive, and impunity prevails.

CISLAC also draws attention to irregularities in personnel management, including flawed recruitment, decentralized payment systems, and non-transparent promotions within the military. These gaps create fertile ground for corruption. Meanwhile, inadequate technical expertise within National Assembly committees undermines effective civilian oversight of defence activities. This leaves critical financial and operational functions exposed to corruption risks.

The policy brief further notes that financial management in the defence sector often bypasses even the limited rules that exist, allowing informal and self-serving practices to flourish. External audits are severely hampered by the Ministry of Defense’s consistent refusal to release necessary documents or grant access to accounts. Additionally, Nigeria’s Audit Act remains outdated, rendering the Office of the Auditor General incapable of properly scrutinizing defence finances.

CISLAC put forward the following Recommendations:

1. In partnership with TI-DS with support from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Netherlands, we demand continue support to national and sub-national stakeholder platforms that engage with the Nigerian government on key issues related to defence and corruption. This will allow civil society actors and the media to provide input into national security strategy discussions and implementing policies.
2. Adoption of an internationally accepted range of exceptions for defence and security that can be used in the development of legal frameworks, specifically in the right to information (RTI) law or information classification systems. This is also important for regulations governing procurement transparency and budget transparency.
3. We demand adoption of global principles and standards for public disclosure of critical information about the defence sector, including defence budgets, competitive contracting, defence income and foreign assistance, disaggregated expenditures, and asset disposals.
4. We demand establishing guidelines for separating confidential from non-confidential information, similar to the Global Principles on National Security and the Right to Information – The Tshwane Principles, would help limit abuses by setting out what information on budgets and procurements could be disclosed. For genuinely confidential procurements, a separate legal procedure could be designed allowing for monitoring by a confidential senate committee and a unit with suitable security clearance within the Bureau for Public Procurement (BPP).
5. Immediately amend the Audit Act by the National Assembly to address current trends and challenges, while enhancing the effective functioning of the Office of Auditor General of the Federation to fully interrogate financial management in defence and security sector.
6. Advocate for the harmonization of legal and policy frameworks governing defence and security, both through independent analysis and via platforms for direct engagement with government actors. This is particularly relevant for freedom of information and whistleblowing and for public procurement processes and national strategy and policy development.
7. Adequate monitoring mechanisms for gender-related compliance in the Defence and Security sector. This will help to prevent gender-based violence and abuse during operations. It has become imperative to fully implement the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 to adequately integrate women’s participation and representation at all levels of decision making in the defence and security sector.
8. Strengthen civilian oversight of the defence sector, both in the legislature and the administration. Priority areas include:
– Enhance skills within the legislature and parliamentary committee system, particularly regarding oversight of defence strategies and policies, defence budgets and arms imports.
– Administrative oversight of military expenditures through external auditing and improved tracking of financial outlays.
– Administrative oversight of procurement practices through tender board controls and anti-collusion controls.
9. Strengthen personnel management systems for both military and civilian personnel, in collaboration with MOD and Armed Forces. Priority areas are:
– Payment systems, including numbers of personnel, pay rates, and allowances.
– Formalization and oversight of top-level appointments, promotions, and recruitment.
– Integrity standards in defence personnel management (code of conduct, anti-bribery, anti-corruption training, etc).
10. Procurement transparency and oversight; In particular, reviewing the legal exemptions in Section 15 of the Public Procurement Law for military and defence purchases and recommending changes that enhance transparency and accountability.