The Inspector-General of Police, IGP Olatunji Rilwan Disu, has described illicit arms proliferation as a major threat to peace and security across Africa, fuelling terrorism, banditry, kidnapping and organised crime.
The IGP made the remarks while declaring open the Small Arms and Light Weapons Identification and Tracing (SALW-IT) Simulation Programme, on Monday in Abuja, with participants drawn Nigeria, Chad, the Central African Republic, Mali, Algeria, Côte d’Ivoire, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Niger, Libya, Benin and the Republic of the Congo.
The five-day programme, running from 12th to 16th October 2026, is designed to strengthen participants’ capacity to identify, mark, register, and trace small arms, light weapons, and ammunition.
The training combines technical instruction with practical exercises, including simulations at the Nigeria Police Simulation Centre.
Disu said effective weapons tracing would help investigators uncover trafficking networks, financiers, and supply routes, thereby enabling targeted action against illicit arms trafficking.
The IGP highlighted the programme’s relevance to preparations for Nigeria’s upcoming elections.
He believes that by disrupting illicit arms supply, electoral violence and intimidation would be tamed, voters, and electoral personnel protected while ensuring necessary security conditions for peaceful, free, and fair elections.
He assured that the knowledge and skills acquired will be cascaded through structured training and knowledge-sharing across Police commands and formations in Nigeria.
“This will strengthen officers’ ability to identify, trace, and recover weapons, develop actionable intelligence, and support routine policing and election-security operations.”
The IGP called for closer sub-regional and continental cooperation through timely intelligence sharing, coordinated investigations, and mutual assistance in locating and lawfully apprehending suspects involved in transborder crime.
He stressed that cooperation through established legal and institutional channels is essential to preventing offenders from exploiting national borders to evade justice.
He further stated that all Inspectors-General of Police from West and East African countries would come together to deliberate on crime-related issues and develop modalities for addressing transborder crime.
These deliberations, Disu said, would support the broader drive for coordinated responses to shared security threats.
The IGP commended the African Union Mechanism for Police Cooperation (AFRIPOL), the Bonn International Centre for Conflict Studies (BICC), INTERPOL, relevant African Union entities and experts from the German Armed Forces Verification Centre for their support.
He urged participants to share operational experiences, build lasting professional relationships, and apply the knowledge gained in their respective countries.
Disu reaffirmed the Force’s commitment to regional and continental arms-control efforts and pledged sustained institutional support and operational cooperation to translate the training into improved public safety and election security.
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