Poor coordination undermines fight against violent extremism

By Abubakar Yunusa

Stakeholders in Nigeria’s security and development sectors have raised concerns that poor coordination among government agencies and partners is weakening efforts to tackle violent extremism across the country.

The warning was issued during a virtual consultative forum convened by the PAVE Network through its Knowledge, Innovation and Resource Hub, in collaboration with the National Counter-Terrorism Centre and other partners.

Participants at the meeting, drawn from federal and state institutions, civil society organisations and development partners, said disjointed responses were creating gaps being exploited by extremist groups.

Chairman of PAVE Network, Jaye Gaskia, said there was an urgent need to move beyond policy adoption to practical implementation at the state level.

“We are deliberately focusing on localisation because this is a national policy that must be adapted to local realities,” he said. “States must identify their priorities and develop coordination mechanisms that work for them.”

Gaskia noted that while technical working groups had been set up in several states, especially in the North-West, their effectiveness depended largely on synergy among stakeholders.

Also speaking, Principal Staff Officer at the counter-terrorism centre, Iye Mangset, said the revised Policy Framework and National Action Plan had been strengthened to reflect emerging threats.

She, however, stressed that implementation remained the major challenge.

“The priority now is effective implementation at the state level. We need all partners to sustain this effort so the framework delivers real impact,” Mangset said.

The National Coordinator of the Global Community Engagement and Resilience Fund in Nigeria, Yetunde Adegoke, emphasised the need to consolidate gains made so far through sustained engagement.

Similarly, a Partner at Nextier, Ndubisi Nwokolo, called for a shift from reactive, force-based responses to preventive strategies.

“For this to succeed, we must address the root causes of radicalisation. Violent extremism is not just a security issue; it is tied to governance, inequality and social exclusion,” he said.

Findings from the forum revealed that despite progress in establishing state-level structures, efforts are still hampered by weak inter-agency coordination, bureaucratic delays, inadequate funding and overdependence on donor support.

One participant said, “There is growing awareness, but implementation is still uneven. What is needed now is alignment and sustained political will.”

Stakeholders warned that without a coordinated national and subnational approach, gains recorded in some regions could easily be reversed as extremist groups exploit existing gaps.

They called for stronger alignment between federal and state actors, institutionalisation of coordination mechanisms, and dedicated budgetary allocations to sustain interventions.

The forum also highlighted the importance of strategic communication in countering extremist narratives and building public trust, noting that a national communication plan would soon be unveiled alongside the revised framework.