The President of the Nigerian Army Officers’ Wives Association (NAOWA), Dr Safiya Shaibu, says family support is critical to sustaining soldiers’ morale, resilience and operational effectiveness.
Shaibu stated this on Tuesday at a sensitisation seminar for spouses and children of Nigerian Army personnel at the Jaji Military Cantonment, Kaduna State.
She was represented by the Chairman, NAOWA Education Committee, Mrs Abisat Abdullahi.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the seminar was organised by the Nigerian Army Headquarters Department of Transformation and Innovation, with the theme, “Enlightening Families on Nigerian Army Operations and Their Roles in Mission Success.”
The NAOWA president said the programme was designed to deepen families’ understanding of Army operations and equip them to provide effective support to personnel.
She said contemporary security challenges required not only a professional and resilient fighting force, but also informed, supportive and united families.
Shaibu noted that prolonged deployments and the peculiarities of military life placed emotional and psychological pressure on soldiers and their families, adding that families remained indispensable partners in sustaining morale and cohesion.
“We cannot achieve lasting operational success if the home front is left uninformed or unsupported,” she said.
She stressed the need for families to understand the reasons for deployments, demands of service life and welfare support systems available to them.
Shaibu reaffirmed NAOWA’s commitment to improving the welfare of military families through initiatives that promote unity, self-reliance and sustainable livelihoods.
“Strong families make strong soldiers, and strong soldiers make a strong nation. Every success on the battlefield rests on the foundation of the home,” she added.
Earlier, the Chief of Army Transformation and Innovation, Maj.-Gen. Peter Okoye, said the seminar was organised to address observations from ongoing Army operations across the country.
Okoye, who represented the Chief of Army Staff, Lt.-Gen. Waidi Shaibu, said the Army had identified challenges relating to combat effectiveness, impact of operations on personnel and substance abuse.
He said the department had earlier organised a separate seminar for personnel on warrior ethos, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and substance abuse, and noted that families were critical because they were often the first to notice behavioural changes in soldiers.
Also speaking, Mrs Maryam Inuwa said the family sensitisation was a follow-up to the personnel seminar and was approved in recognition of the vital role of the home front in mission success.
Inuwa said the strength of the Army depended not only on equipment and operational capability, but also on the resilience and well-being of personnel and their families.
She said the programme focused on four areas — leadership in family life, practising warrior ethos at home, preventing drug and substance abuse, and supporting recovery of personnel experiencing PTSD.
She urged families to promote mutual respect, effective communication and discipline, discourage substance abuse and support the mental well-being of their loved ones.
Inuwa thanked the Chief of Army Staff for approving the initiative and commended the NAOWA president, resource persons and participating families.
She expressed confidence that the engagement would strengthen Army-family relations and enhance operational effectiveness.
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