Nigeria’s top military official on Tuesday proposed building fences along the country’s borders with four neighboring nations to stop armed groups from entering amid worsening insecurity.
Speaking at a security conference in Abuja, Defense Chief of Staff General Christopher Musa said managing Nigeria’s porous borders is “very critical,” pointing to border fences in Pakistan and Saudi Arabia as examples of how to improve security.
“Other countries, because of the level of insecurity they have, had to fence their borders,” Musa said. His remarks marked the first time a senior Nigerian official has publicly floated such a plan.
Nigeria has faced a 16-year Islamist insurgency in the northeast, led by Boko Haram and its offshoot, Islamic State West Africa Province. Attacks on security forces and civilians have displaced tens of thousands and worsened regional instability.
Nigeria’s longest border is with Cameroon, a Boko Haram hotspot, while it also shares borders with Niger, Benin, and Chad—nations grappling with violence from armed groups across the Sahel.
Musa warned that Nigeria’s perceived wealth makes it a prime target, saying, “It is Nigeria that everybody is interested in. That is why we need to secure fully and take control of our borders. It is critical for our survival and sovereignty.”