Nigerian Army Plans Mini Zoos in Forest

Nigerian Army Plans Mini Zoos in Forest

In line with the directives of the Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Lieutenant General Tukur Yusuf Buratai for formations to establish mini Zoos and parks as well as Units to keep and maintain live mascots in order to strengthen regimentation in the Nigerian Army, the Department of Army Standards and Evaluation will be organizing a one week seminar on Regimentation and combating security challenges associated with forests and protected areas from the 31st of March to the 6th of April 2019 at the Army Headquarters Officers’ Mess, Asokoro, Abuja.

The Seminar which is being organized in collaboration with the National Park Service (NPS) and other stakeholders responsible for management of game reserves, forestry and protected areas in Nigeria.

The main thrust of the seminar is to discuss the point of convergence between the regimentation in the army, our floras and faunas as well as forests and national security.

The Nigerian Army will continue to engage in all activities that will help in the revitalisation of the flora and fauna species that are becoming extinct due to the activities of criminal elements and bandits that have constituted nuisance to the larger society.

Apart from the educational and other social benefits of this point venture, there will be numerous geostrategic security benefits in taking the issues of these forests and parks serious.

The Seminar with a THEME ‘’ENHANCING SYNERGY BETWEEN THE NIGERIAN ARMY AND NATIONAL PARK SERVICE : NATIONAL SECURITY IN PERSPECTIVE’’ will have participants drawn from NA formations , NPS , Federal Department of Forestry (FDS), National Environmental Standard Regulation Enforcement Agency (NESREA) and other stakeholders.

Series of lectures and interactive sessions will be delivered by erudite scholars and experts from within and outside the NA on selected topics to enrich the knowledge base of the participants.Field trips will be embarked upon to two National parks in Nigeria namely Kanji and Akamkpa National parks in Niger and Cross River States respectively.

SAGIR MUSA
Colonel
Acting Director Army Public Relations

HMOD MANSUR DAN ALI ATTENDS UNITED NATIONS PEACEKEEPING MINISTERIAL MEETING ON UNIFORMED CAPABILITIES PERFORMANCE AND PROTECTION OF CIVILIANS AT UN HEADQUARTERS NEW YORK. HE PRESENTED NIGERIA’S STATEMENT AS FOLLOWS.

1. It is with great pleasure that I stand before you for the United Nations Peacekeeping Ministerial on Uniformed Capabilities Performance and Protection of Civilians.

Let me start by expressing my appreciation to the United Nations and our host for organizing this important Ministerial which presents opportunity to discuss and generate the specialized capabilities necessary for the United Nations Peacekeeping.

I also want to applaud the Secretary General’s ongoing effort to strengthen peacekeeping operations through Action for Peacekeeping (A4P) Initiative with a specific focus on uniformed capabilities, performance and the protection of civilians.

Nigeria’s participation in UN Peacekeeping has declined significantly of recent, mainly due to her commitment to the war on insurgency in the North-Eastern part of the Country and Sub-regional Peacekeeping commitments.

I am pleased to inform Your Excellencies that a lot of successes have been achieved in the fight against terrorism and we are in the process of demining affected areas and rebuilding communities.

These successes have no doubt been made possible with the collaboration from International Community and countries of the Lake Chad Basin Commission.

Despite the above mentioned challenges, Nigeria has continued to play its role in supporting the United Nations and other stakeholders to achieve international peace and security.

One of such areas is through the Martin Luther Agwai International Leadership and Peacekeeping Centre, Jaji in Kaduna State. The Centre which is aimed at delivering realistic training packages on Peace Support Operations to potential United Nations and regional peacekeepers received recognition from the United Nations Integrated Training Service in August 2018.

The renewal of the recognition has been requested by the Centre to meet up with international standards. This was after the curriculum was reviewed and updated in line with the present-day peacekeeping contemporary challenges.

When approved, the Centre would serve as an additional training hub to the Regional Service Centre Entebbe, Uganda thereby reducing its burden.

I am also pleased to state that the Federal Government of Nigeria has put in place adequate measures in enhancing the performance of our troops and protection of civilians during peacekeeping operations. These measures include effective
pre-deployment and in-mission training for troops, zero tolerance to Sexual Exploitation and Abuse, clear leadership and instructions to troops as well as deployment of more female peacekeepers for effective peace operations and to better protect civilians amongst others.

5. On this note, on behalf of the Federal Government of Nigeria, I wish to assure the United Nations of our continuous commitment and support to ensure international peace and security.
Thank you for listening.

NEW YORK
29 March 2019