CEM REPORT, SECURITY | To reduce Nigeria’s dependence on importation, the Department of State Services (DSS) revealed plans to produce made-in-Nigeria weapons for its agents.
DSS DG – Yusuf Bich
The Director-General of the Department of State Services, Yusuf Bichi disclosed that the agency plans to produce Unmanned Aerial Vehicles, AK-47s, and other weapons to be used by the service.
Speaking at the graduation of the Executive Intelligence Management Course 16 participants in Abuja, Buchi stated that the initiative aims to reduce Nigeria’s reliance on foreign countries for weapons procurement and save significant financial resources.
“We shall support the institute in its training programs. I care deeply for the welfare of our staff, both active and retired. We shall never go back on that. We’ll also continue to invest in research and development,” Bichi said.
He further elaborated on the initiative using a coded message: “Sooner or later we shall start eating what we produce. And we produce what we eat.” He explained this to mean the DSS will soon utilize its own produced platforms and assets, including drones and AK-47s.
“When we reach our destination, we will save the country from the pains of the resources being chunked out to buy such weapons,” Bichi added.
This move by the DSS marks a significant step towards self-reliance and cost-effectiveness in the Nigerian defence sector. The production of locally-made weapons has the potential to improve security operations while also stimulating the domestic economy.
Need for Local Production by DSS and others
Nigeria has been facing various security challenges in recent years, such as the insurgency of Boko Haram, the militancy of Niger Delta Avengers, and the clashes between farmers and herders. These threats have exposed the limitations and vulnerabilities of Nigeria’s dependence on imported arms and equipment for its military and security forces.
[READ ALSO] Nigeria Signs $150 Million Lithium-Ion Battery Manufacturing Deal with China Firm
To address this issue, the immediate past President Muhammadu Buhari called for the re-engineering of the Defence Industries Corporation of Nigeria (DICON), to produce weapons locally and reduce the reliance on foreign suppliers.
Efforts in Indigenous Weapons Development
Recent report DICON, which has a technical partnership with Poly-Technologies of China, has already manufactured various types of small arms and ammunition, such as the NR-Light Automatic Rifle, the Sub-Machine Gun, and the General Purpose Machine Gun. It has also signed a letter of intent with the Polish Armaments Group to produce Beryl M762 assault rifles in Nigeria.
In addition to DICON, the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) has also been involved in the development of indigenous weapons and military equipment. The NAF has successfully designed and produced the first Nigerian-made unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), named Gulma, which can be used for surveillance and reconnaissance missions.
The NAF has also collaborated with the National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI) to produce the first Nigerian-made helicopter, named NASENI Heli-1, which is expected to be ready for flight tests by 2025.
Concerns About Financing and Execution
Anyone who knows the Nigerian government well enough will agree that she makes plans but is very lethargic in execution, especially with the instability of the naira and revenue which is spent mostly on debt servicing, it calls for worry about how the government will finance weapons research and production.
Also knowing the funds running into millions quoted for projects which is supposed to lessen the nation’s import dependency which never come to bare and the funds never realised, it further because worrisome on the accountability and transparency that would be employed to ensure success and value.
