Nigeria will begin large-scale domestic production of defence equipment within the next year to meet its military needs and export hardware to other African countries, Defence Minister Christopher Musa has said.
Musa disclosed this in a statement Tuesday following the maiden Africa International Defence Exhibition (AFRIDEX), which brought together African governments, military institutions, defence manufacturers and technology innovators.
He said the planned production would reduce Nigeria’s reliance on imported military equipment and strengthen its domestic defence manufacturing capacity.
“Within the next year, Nigeria will commence large-scale local production of defence hardware to meet domestic requirements and support exports to other African countries,” Musa said.
“This is an important step towards building a self-reliant defence industry, strengthening our national security and positioning Nigeria as a contributor to Africa’s defence manufacturing capacity.”
Musa said the government was pursuing domestic production of military equipment, weapons, ammunition and other essential defence systems through investments, technology transfers, research and collaboration with international manufacturers.
He said the Defence Industries Corporation of Nigeria was central to efforts to expand local manufacturing capacity and produce equipment for the Nigerian Armed Forces.
Nigeria currently imports much of its military hardware from countries including the United States, China, France, and Italy.
According to Musa, AFRIDEX would also provide opportunities for Nigeria to strengthen bilateral and multilateral security relations, exchange expertise and establish partnerships to address security challenges across the continent.
The exhibition covered land, air, maritime, space and cyber security, with a focus on connecting Africa’s security needs with the technology, expertise, investment and industrial capacity required to address them.
The minister thanked President Bola Tinubu for supporting domestic defence production and initiatives to strengthen national security.
