General Christopher Gwabin Musa, Nigeria’s minister of defence, urged universities to help security agencies study conflict and called for greater domestic production of security equipment and ammunition at an Oct. 30 commissioning in Ibadan.
At the University of Ibadan, the new hub is based in the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) Centre of Excellence in Security Management. The Ministry of Defence traces the project to Musa’s lecture at the university in July 2025, titled “Global Fragility and Security Management in Nigeria.” Musa said academic work could help explain what drives insecurity and assess responses alongside the work of security forces in the field.
Musa asked the university to develop programs bringing scholars together with military personnel, law enforcement officials, policymakers and technology specialists. The ministry release lists potential research topics including community engagement, artificial intelligence, conflict prevention, intelligence analysis, cybersecurity and crisis management. University of Ibadan Vice-Chancellor Kayode Adebowale said the hub should generate data to guide the Defence Ministry and security agencies.
Separately, Musa said difficulties obtaining weapons and ammunition had prolonged insecurity. He urged local producers to increase output and build connections with manufacturers abroad. He also said field operations had stepped up and the security situation was gradually improving.
Hub lead researcher Isaac Olawale Albert called for more funding for research and projects, as well as closer engagement between researchers and security agencies.
