The Multinational Joint Task Force is unable to sustain large-scale operations against the Islamic State of the West African Province (ISWAP) due to inadequate, inconsistent, and insufficient funding.

Mamman Nuhu, the executive secretary of the Lake Chad Basin Commission and head of mission of the MNJTF, revealed this on Wednesday at the fourth Lake Chad Governor’s Forum meeting in N’Djamena, Chad.

The MNJTF was reactivated in late 2014 by the Lake Chad Basin Commission (LCBC) as a regional security arrangement to fight the spreading threat of Boko Haram in the region. 

The African Union Peace and Security Council authorised the operationalisation of the force’s mandate in early 2015 and renewed its mandate yearly. 

The force comprises troops from its five troop-contributing countries, namely Nigeria, Niger, Chad, Cameroon and a smaller contingent from Benin.

“We are experiencing inadequate funding and operational equipment to conduct effective and safe operations. Funding for the force is not readily available from contributing countries and partners due to the economic downtown across the world as a result of COVID-19 and now Russia and Ukraine, which is significantly hindering the effectiveness of the force,” said Mr Nuhu.

He said the MNJTF had recorded tremendous successes in restoring total sanity and security in the Lake Chad regions despite the challenges.

“The Lake Chad Basin is facing the growing threat of climate change, which is impacting the surface area of the lake, and the Boko Haram insurgency, which has triggered a wave of violence and instability throughout the region,” stated Mr Nuhu. “These urgent issues must be addressed locally, regionally, and globally to strengthen community resilience and pathways for sustainable living.”

The MNTF secretary stressed that there “can be no better moment than now to enhance stakeholders’ understanding of the emerging security trends in the Basin and scale up collective efforts towards” stabilising the region. 

He also mentioned that the Fourth Lake Chad Basin Governors’ Forum for Regional Cooperation on Stabilisation, Peacebuilding, and Sustainable Development offers a space for actors to strengthen support and efforts to intensify regional stabilisation and humanitarian and development initiatives for scaled-up results.

Since the previous Governors’ Forum in October 2021 in Yaoundé, Cameroon, the implementation of the Regional Stabilisation Strategy has recorded extensive achievements, including significant progress in community recovery, the return of over half a million internally displaced persons, and the revitalisation of the local economy.

(NAN)