The National Security Adviser (NSA), Malam Nuhu Ribadu, has said the collaboration between the Federal Government and the Kaduna State Government is producing significant gains in the fight against insecurity.
Ribadu, who was represented by the Director of Internal Security at the Office of the National Security Adviser, Malam Sani Sani, made the remark on Saturday during the graduation of the pioneer batch of Armed Forest Guards in Kaduna.
He commended the Kaduna State Government for the quality of training provided to the recruits, describing it as the best conducted in the country so far.
“From the evaluation we carried out across the country, the training in Kaduna State has been recorded as the best at the moment,” he said.
The NSA added that the Office of the National Security Adviser would not hesitate to approve future requests from Kaduna State to continue the programme if the governor decides to expand it.
According to him, more than 1,000 Armed Forest Guards underwent intensive training in weapons handling, physical fitness, combat readiness, community relations, civil-military cooperation, inter-agency coordination and adherence to the rule of law.
He explained that the graduates are expected to return to their communities and serve as first responders, helping to build community resilience against criminal elements before the arrival of conventional security agencies.
Ribadu recalled that President Bola Tinubu launched the Armed Forest Guard initiative on May 24, 2025, to train indigenous residents to secure forests, protect biodiversity, safeguard watersheds and deny criminal groups safe havens in ungoverned spaces.
He noted that the President mandated the Office of the National Security Adviser to provide strategic leadership and coordinate the training programme nationwide.
Speaking at the event, Kaduna State Governor Uba Sani thanked the NSA for his support and welcomed the recognition of Kaduna’s training programme as the best in the country.
The governor announced that the state had formally requested approval to recruit and train an additional 1,000 Armed Forest Guards, stressing that security remains a top priority of his administration.
He said insecurity had significantly reduced across several parts of the state since he assumed office in 2023, allowing residents to travel to previously inaccessible local government areas without police escorts.
According to him, frontline local government areas such as Birnin Gwari, Giwa and Kachia, once heavily affected by insecurity, have witnessed improved security due to collaboration between the state and the Federal Government.
Sani expressed confidence that the additional request for 1,000 Forest Guards would receive the approval of the National Security Adviser and President Tinubu, adding that his administration would continue working with stakeholders to build a safer and more prosperous Kaduna State.
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