President Bola Tinubu approves a new security force to protect Nigeria’s forests, curb criminal hideouts, and create jobs for thousands of young citizens.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has authorized the creation of the Forest Guards of Nigeria, a new security force tasked with securing more than 1,100 forests across the country. The move is part of a wider effort to dismantle safe havens used by terrorists, armed bandits, and other criminal groups.
The initiative, announced on Wednesday by presidential adviser Sunday Dare, marks one of the most direct attempts yet by the government to address insecurity in Nigeria’s rural areas. Forest regions, many of them vast and poorly monitored, have long provided cover for armed gangs responsible for mass kidnappings, extortion, and deadly raids on villages.
Under the President’s directive, the Office of the National Security Adviser will oversee the immediate recruitment and training of personnel, working in partnership with the Ministry of Environment and state authorities. Officials say the guards will be fully armed and equipped to conduct operations against criminal elements entrenched in forested regions.
“The forest guards will be well-trained and armed to flush out terrorists and criminals hiding in our forests,” Dare said in a statement on X, formerly Twitter. He described the program as a coordinated federal and state initiative aimed at restoring control over vulnerable areas.
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The government has presented the plan not only as a security measure but also as a job creation scheme. Thousands of young Nigerians are expected to be recruited, offering employment opportunities while strengthening the country’s security architecture.
President Tinubu has repeatedly pledged to deny criminal groups any territorial foothold, a stance he reaffirmed when unveiling the forest guard program. “We will take back our forests,” he declared, insisting that Nigeria’s sovereignty would not be compromised by armed groups operating in remote areas.
The establishment of the Forest Guards comes at a time when Nigeria faces mounting security challenges, including insurgencies in the northeast, banditry in the northwest, and clashes between herders and farmers in the central belt. Analysts say reclaiming forested zones is critical to weakening the networks that enable such violence.
While details of deployment timelines have yet to be disclosed, the Office of the National Security Adviser has been instructed to ensure the new outfit is adequately resourced and quickly operational. The government hopes the force will provide lasting security for rural communities and restore public confidence in state protection.
Africa Daily News, New York.
