A defence and security technology expert, Zulaykhah Aileru, has called on President Bola Tinubu’s government to prioritise the local production of military equipment.

Ms Aileru made this call in her opinion piece, ‘Africa’s Defence Dilemma’ on Tuesday. She stated that the continent’s prolonged reliance on arms imports had hindered technological growth, depleted economic resources, and compromised national sovereignty.

According to her, despite spending billions of dollars on defense in the past decade, much of Nigeria’s security procurement still comes from foreign original equipment manufacturers, leaving the country vulnerable in times of crisis.

Ms Aileru said that during Nigeria’s peak conflict with Boko Haram, the country struggled to acquire essential weapons after the United States refused to sell due to human rights concerns.

“From 2016 to 2022, Nigeria spent nearly 20 billion dollars on defence and security, largely on foreign procurement. In just the first quarter of 2025, arms imports exceeded ₦22.7 billion. At a moment of urgent need, we were left scrambling. This is the risk of overdependence on foreign allies for critical national defence,” she said.

Ms Aileru said Nigeria had begun to lay the groundwork for a domestic defence industry through Executive Order 5, which directed all ministries, departments, and agencies to prioritise indigenous technologies and local content.

She noted that this policy had led to new partnerships between the Ministry of Defence and private sector innovators, as well as renewed investments in institutions such as DICON, NASENI, and NOTAP.

Ms Aileru, however, identified structural challenges, including a lack of transparency in procurement, weak intellectual property protection, slow testing approval cycles, and limited financial incentives for local defense entrepreneurs.

She advocated tax breaks, export credits, and streamlined regulatory frameworks to boost indigenous capacity and attract investment into the sector. The security expert added that a homegrown defence ecosystem would reduce external risks, retain economic value, and enable faster innovation in response to threats such as insurgency, piracy, and cyber warfare.

“No sovereign nation should outsource its security entirely. Industrial sovereignty is non-negotiable. Africa is no longer asking whether we can build our own defence technology. That question has been answered. The real question is: will we act?” she added.

Ms Aileru urged policymakers to view defence industrialisation not just as a security need but as a vehicle for economic transformation and continental stability.

(NAN)