Nigeria pushes ECOWAS border alliance against terror, cross-border crimes
President Bola Tinubu will, next month, launch the African Union’s (AU) combined maritime task force – a multinational approach to combat transnational organised crimes across the 6,000-kilometre expanse of the Gulf of Guinea (GoG).
 
This was as Nigeria reaffirmed the critical role of cross-border cooperation in tackling terrorism and trans-border crime, and in deepening regional integration across West Africa.
 
This position was presented by the Director-General of the National Boundary Commission (NBC), Adamu Adaji, represented by the Head of Cross Border Cooperation, Farouk Tarfa, during the Annual Regional Stakeholders Meeting on ECOWAS Cross Border Cooperation in Abuja yesterday.
 
The Chief of Naval Staff (CNS), Vice Admiral Idi Abbas, speaking through the Chief of Policy and Plans (Navy), Rear Admiral Akinola Olodude, revealed the launch during a news conference, as part of activities lined up to mark the 70th anniversary of the Nigerian Navy.
 
The African Union Peace and Security Council, on April 23, 2025, formally endorsed the combined maritime task force as a standing and ready-to-deploy maritime force for the GoG.
 
Abbas said the President would flag off the task force, headquartered in Lagos, to symbolise its operationalisation, saying that countries that had joined so far were Gambia, Ghana, Liberia, Sierra Leone and Nigeria.
 
He said other activities lined up to mark the anniversary include an international fleet review by Tinubu at the Eko Atlantic Waterfront.
 
“He will be personally conducting the trooping and presentation of colours to the Nigerian Navy and commissioning three vessels into the service of the Nigerian Navy,” Abbas said.
 
The 6th Sea Power for Africa Symposium (SPAS) will be held also to mark the anniversary.

“The Symposium started in 2005 and has been rotated between South Africa and Nigeria. This is the 6th edition and the Nigerian Navy is proud to be the one hosting for this year. The theme is ‘Leveraging technology for enhanced maritime security in Africa’,” the CNS said.

The regional meeting, hosted by the Economic Community of West African States(ECOWAS), brought together delegates from Nigeria, Benin, Cabo Verde, Côte d’Ivoire, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Senegal, Sierra Leone and Togo to deliberate on strategies for strengthening cross-border cooperation and regional integration in the West African sub-region.
 
Speaking during a plenary session, Dr Tarfa disclosed that Nigeria was the first country in the region to establish the ECOWAS Cross-Border Cooperation Programme, stressing that the initiative had become vital in addressing growing border security threats and fostering social cohesion among border communities.
 
According to him, the programme leverages the shared socio-cultural identities of border communities to drive the ECOWAS integration agenda and facilitate the transition from a “Community of States” to a “Community of People”.
 
He explained that the initiative supported joint development and utilisation of trans-boundary resources, integrated health management systems against trans-boundary diseases, resource pooling for strategic services and information sharing among member states.
  T
arfa added that the programme also created opportunities for coordinated security operations capable of guaranteeing peace, stability and economic growth across border regions.