The Federal Government has announced plans to deploy 7,000 forest guards across seven pilot states to curb insecurity linked to ungoverned forest areas. The National Security Adviser (NSA), Nuhu Ribadu, disclosed this on Saturday in Yola, Adamawa State, during the graduation ceremony of newly trained forest guards.
“We are fully aware of Nigerians’ concerns about insecurity across the country,” Ribadu said. “Accordingly, the newly trained Forest Guards will be deployed immediately to all the beleaguered communities in the highlighted states, particularly around forested and ungoverned spaces.” He said the guards would gather human intelligence, support security operations, and restore government presence.
Ribadu said the guards completed a three-month training programme in Adamawa, Borno, Kwara, Kebbi, Niger, Sokoto, and Yobe under the Presidential Forest Guards initiative launched in May. “Trainees underwent extensive physical and mental conditioning,” he said, adding that the pilot phase would lead to a nationwide rollout as more recruits are trained.