CDS Commends North-West Expansion of Operation Safe Corridor; Calls for Victim-Centric Reintegration
The Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), General Olufemi Oluyede, has commended coordinators and strategic partners for expanding Operation Safe Corridor (OPSC) to Nigeria’s North-West region as part of intensified non-kinetic efforts to tackle banditry, kidnapping and violent extremism.
The CDS gave the commendation in a keynote address at a one-day OPSC stakeholders’ meeting in Abuja focused on developing modalities for the transfer of rehabilitated and repentant fighters to federal and state authorities for structured reintegration.
Represented by the Chief of Defence Operations at Defence Headquarters, Major General Jamal AbdulSalam, General Oluyede described Operation Safe Corridor as a vital pillar within Nigeria’s broader security architecture. He said the initiative reflects the Armed Forces of Nigeria’s philosophy of enhanced jointness and a strengthened operational posture under a whole-of-government approach aimed at safeguarding national sovereignty and prosperity.
He praised the growing synergy between federal and state authorities in sustaining the programme, citing structured collaboration with the Borno State Government and the successful processing of clients at the Mallam Sidi camp as indicators of institutional maturity.
“The expansion of the stabilisation architecture to the North-West, alongside ongoing consultations in the North-Central, demonstrates that our approach is becoming nationally coordinated and standards-driven,” he said.
General Oluyede emphasised that non-kinetic measures complement rather than replace military operations.
“While kinetic operations create the space for stabilisation, non-kinetic measures reinforce operational gains and consolidate long-term peace,” he noted.
He disclosed that since its inception in 2016, Operation Safe Corridor has processed thousands of clients under a structured, controlled and integrity-driven Disarmament, Rehabilitation and Reintegration (DRR) framework. According to him, the initiative has demonstrated that properly screened and monitored surrender pathways can weaken insurgent cohesion, generate actionable intelligence and promote sustainable stability.
However, he stressed that reintegration is a shared responsibility.
“It requires sustained commitment from state governments, justice institutions, social services, development actors and community leaders. Today’s meeting is not merely procedural; it is strategic,” he added.
The CDS underscored the importance of ensuring that reintegration processes are conditional, structured, community-sensitive and victim-conscious. He stressed that communities affected by violence must witness tangible peace dividends beyond support for former combatants.
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In his welcome address, the Coordinator of Operation Safe Corridor, Brigadier General Yusuf Ali, said the programme’s steady progress and geographic expansion are anchored on the CDS’s philosophy for the Armed Forces of Nigeria.
He described OPSC as a multi-agency humanitarian stabilisation initiative backed by the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and relevant international humanitarian and human rights instruments. The operation draws personnel from 17 services, ministries, departments and agencies, reflecting a comprehensive whole-of-government strategy in addressing insurgency and violent extremism.
According to Brigadier General Ali, since 2016, OPSC has evolved institutionally by strengthening screening mechanisms, refining ideological disengagement modules, enhancing psychosocial recovery systems and improving inter-agency coordination.
He disclosed that 117 clients from Borno State successfully completed the DRR process at the Mallam Sidi camp, demonstrating improved coordination in structured reception, monitoring and community reintegration.
On the North-West expansion, he noted that the establishment of a DRR camp in February last year marked a significant broadening of OPSC’s stabilisation footprint. Drawing from domestic experience and comparative insights from countries such as Colombia, he revealed that discussions are ongoing with the Zamfara State Government to recalibrate the facility into a more comprehensive Victim Healing, Rehabilitation and Reintegration framework operating alongside structured disengagement pathways.
He explained that the North-West model is designed to integrate psychosocial recovery, community reconciliation, livelihood support and structured monitoring within a unified stabilisation framework.
Similarly, he disclosed that the Benue State Government has formally requested the establishment of a DRR camp in the North-Central region. The governor recently visited the CDS in his capacity as Chairman of the OPSC National Steering Committee to present the request.
Reflecting on achievements at the Mallam Sidi camp, the Commandant, Colonel Abiodun Johnson, revealed that 744 clients were deradicalised and rehabilitated between October 2024 and September 2025. He noted that participants, aged between 18 and 50, were predominantly Nigerians, with some from neighbouring countries including Niger and Burkina Faso.
The stakeholders’ meeting reaffirmed the Armed Forces’ commitment to deepening non-kinetic stabilisation efforts while sustaining military pressure, reinforcing a nationally coordinated pathway toward lasting peace and security.
The meeting brought together representatives of federal ministries, the Office of the National Security Adviser, state governments, neighbouring countries including Burkina Faso, Chad, Niger and Cameroon, as well as international partners such as Norway, the United Kingdom, the European Union, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), the International Committee of the Red Cross, the International Organization for Migration and other development partners.
By PRNigeria
