National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, has warned that military operations alone will not end Nigeria’s worsening banditry crisis, calling for a broader security strategy built around intelligence-sharing, tighter border control, community trust and sustained action against illicit arms networks.
Ribadu said the threat had evolved far beyond cattle rustling, highway robbery and kidnapping, with armed groups now imposing illegal taxes on rural communities, disrupting farming and commerce, and in some areas attempting to exert territorial control.
He spoke on Saturday through the Director of Legal Services in the Office of the National Security Adviser, Zakari Mijinyawa, at a brainstorming session on banditry organised by the Sokoto Advancement Forum in collaboration with the Centre for Peace Studies, Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto.
The NSA said Sokoto’s proximity to Niger Republic and the wider Sahel had given the insecurity a dangerous cross-border dimension, allowing criminal networks to exploit porous frontiers, weak surveillance and regional instability.
“Sokoto’s proximity to the Republic of Niger and the wider Sahel adds a significant cross-border dimension to this challenge,” Ribadu said.
“We must therefore combine intelligence-led operations, effective border management, regional cooperation and sustained action against the supply of illicit weapons and other logistical support.”
His remarks underscored the Federal Government’s growing recognition that the battle against banditry cannot be won through firepower alone.
Ribadu said security agencies must also address the socioeconomic conditions that make young people vulnerable to recruitment by criminal groups.
He advocated lawful rehabilitation programmes for eligible individuals willing to renounce violence, but warned that such measures must not undermine justice.
“Reintegration must never replace justice or reward violence,” he said.
The NSA outlined five priority areas for strengthening security in Sokoto: denying armed groups safe havens, improving intelligence and early-warning systems, rebuilding community trust, protecting agriculture and rural livelihoods, and preventing the recruitment of young people into criminal networks.
He said security agencies must improve coordination and information-sharing, stressing that communities were more likely to provide actionable intelligence when they trusted authorities to act quickly and protect their identities.
Ribadu specifically identified Sabon Birni, Isa, Tangaza and Goronyo as areas where early-warning systems should be strengthened so that suspicious movements and emerging threats could be reported swiftly to security agencies.
The NSA also drew attention to the wider economic cost of insecurity, warning that persistent attacks were undermining farming, trade, education and rural livelihoods.
According to him, the success of counter-banditry operations should no longer be measured only by the number of arrests made, weapons recovered or territories cleared.
“We must measure progress by more than arrests, weapons recovered or territory cleared,” he said.
“Success must also mean safer communities, returning families, productive farms, reopened schools, functioning markets and the restoration of public confidence.”
The scale of the crisis in Sokoto was highlighted by the Chairman of the Sokoto Advancement Forum, Prof. Muhammad Ahmad Wali, who said security incidents had been recorded in 21 of the state’s 23 local government areas.
Wali also said more than 1,100 people were reportedly kidnapped in the state in the 12 months leading to June 2026.
He described the situation as a grave threat to lives, livelihoods and the authority of government.
Wali called for stronger intelligence gathering, effective border control, faster justice, deeper community involvement and expanded economic opportunities for young people.
The Vice Chairman of the forum, Prof. Riskuwa Arabu Shehu, urged participants to develop measurable recommendations that could be translated into concrete government action.
He said the forum would compile the outcome of the session into a report and communiqué for presentation to government, security agencies and community stakeholders.
Ribadu’s intervention comes at a time when Nigeria’s security architecture is under renewed pressure to show that counter-banditry operations can deliver more than temporary battlefield gains.
His message was clear: the real measure of victory will not be how many camps are destroyed, but whether families can return home, farmers can work safely, schools can reopen, markets can function and communities can live without fear.
