By Sumaila Ogbaje
The Defence Industries Corporation of Nigeria (DICON) and the Nigeria Security Exhibition and Conference (NISEC) have partnered to develop innovative solutions to address Nigeria and Africa’s defence challenges.
The partnership aims to leverage expertise and resources to tackle security threats and enhance national and regional stability.
Speaking at a news conference in Abuja on Tuesday, the Director-General of DICON, Maj.-Gen. Babatunde Alaya, said the partnership, which will culminate in the 2025 Nigeria International Security Exhibition and Conference (NISECEXPO-DICON), aligns with the DICON Act 2023.
He said the Act empowers DICON to operate as a modern defence manufacturing entity, regulate the defence industrial sector, promote defence research and development, and engage domestic and foreign partners to advance sustainable defence capability and technology transfer within and outside Nigeria.
Alaya, represented by DICON’s Director of Engineering Services, Commodore Adedotun Ogundiran, said the expo represented a forward-looking step towards strengthening Nigeria’s defence industrialisation.
This, according to him, is aiming to establish the country as a central hub for defence research, manufacturing, and technological development in Africa.
“In line with this mandate, the expo will serve as a strategic platform to showcase Nigeria’s evolving defence industrial capability while opening opportunities for investment, industrial partnership, research facilities, and lunar capacity development.
“The event would bring together a broad range of stakeholders, including leaders of the parliamentary organisations, policy makers, tech countries, defence industries, private sector innovators, academia, regulatory institutions, and research bodies among others.
“The exhibition will feature technological showcases and high-level engagements focusing on critical areas of national and regional security,” he added.
DICON D-G said the event would provide opportunities for defence industries and innovators to showcase solutions, network, and attract investment; enable military institutions to explore defence solutions and engage industry leaders; and highlight science and innovation in modern defence systems for researchers and academics.
The Chief Executive Officer of NISECEXPO, Frank Ohwofa, said the theme of the event, “Future Wars: Operational Resilience and Force Build-Up Capabilities,” was not a mere “speculative exercise but a strategic imperative” borne out of the present evolution of threat dynamics facing the world, particularly Africa and Nigeria.
Ohwofa said that as Nigeria’s defence industry moves from assembling to innovation through partnerships, technology transfer, and research and development to produce tailored solutions, it must embrace technology integration that leverages artificial intelligence, unmanned systems, and networked warfare for intelligent decision-making.
According to him, it also means pursuing collaborative build-up, seeking strategic partnerships for co-development and joint ventures that must respect our sovereignty and build mutual capacity.
“Nations are now vulnerable to hybrid threats. These threats blend physical attacks with cyber operations, economic coercion, and relentless disinformation campaigns. We see this reality in the destabilisation of regions and the rise of non-state actors with alarming capabilities.
“For Nigeria and for Africa, this is not an abstract discussion. Our security landscape is directly challenged by complex insurgencies, terrorism, and maritime insecurity in the Gulf of Guinea. We also face the proliferation of advanced weaponry.
“Therefore, Operational Resilience has become the cornerstone of our national defence philosophy,” he said. (NAN)(www.nannews.ng)
Edited by Yakubu Uba
