RESTRICTED

SECURITY CONCERNS/LESSONS BETWEEN NIGERIA AND

REPUBLIC OF BENIN

1. The geo-political disposition of Republic of Benin in comparison to

other contiguous countries bears greater security concerns in military
strategic thinking. Though the historical affinity between the 2 countries
has been adduced to the relative calm being experienced, however, there
are 3 major geographical features that could pose existential threats. The
2 countries are bounded by the Atlantic Ocean, the Badagry Lagoon and its
tributaries as well as the long stretch of 778km of land border. The
inability of harnessing Nigeria’s potentials to checkmate any emerging
threat through these natural features would affect peace and security. For
instance, the 778km land border is rich in agricultural activities
which are an attraction to human habitation. The inability to appropriately
delineate the border area has often been a source of altercation between
border communities. In the same vein, the Badagry Lagoon and its
tributaries lacks adequate policing thus making the route porous and easily
accessible. Finding reveals that it is possible to paddle a canoe from Porto-
Novo to Lagos Marina Jetty unchecked due to the porous nature of the
route. Similarly, along the land border there are over 1000 unmanned and
illegal crossing points between the two countries, as the land borders are
porous and left at the behest of the locals living along the borders and
visibly without much government presence: i.e. in terms of infrastructural
development and security posts.

RESTRICTED
 RESTRICTED

2. While the agricultural benefit along the land border is a positive

development to support economic empowerment of the population, it could
form security concerns in military strategic thinking. Often, altercations
between Nigerians and Beninese living along these border areas were
usually settled through local dispute reconciliation mechanism.
Experiences in the field reveal that some Traditional Leaders could be
complicit in perpetuating transnational crimes such as smuggling activities,
human trafficking, illicit drugs and providing haven for the proliferation of
Small Arms Light Weapons (SALW). This scenario exists because the
Nigerian side of the entire stretch of the border are poorly manned and ill
equipped while the few security deployments are positioned hundreds of
kilometres away from the borderline. The study also discovered that some
of the few policemen deployed to these border Towns are illegally attached
to the Traditional Leaders as Aids instead of active border policing.
Conversely, the Beninese are strategically deployed even overlooking the
Nigerian side. Unfortunately, the Nigerian Border Patrol Units can be
described as ineffective.

3. In this regard, the geo-strategic importance of Tongeji Island in

Ipokia LG of Ogun State; an area known to be rich in mineral deposits is
significant in military security calculations and protecting Nigeria’s
sovereignty in the Western flanks. This is in bid to avoid the Bakassi
peninsula imbroglio. There is no access road that links the Island to other
parts of Nigeria which makes the populace dependent on Republic of Benin

RESTRICTED
 RESTRICTED

for minor social amenities. The only security presence in the Island is the
adhoc initiative by Nigerian Navy Security Out-post comprising of only 8
personnel provided by Forward Operating Base (FOB) in Badagry. It is also
pertinent to mention the singular effort of the FOB in providing basic utility
like renovation of the Oba’s palace, the community primary school, and
repair of the community’s obsolete generator to enable them power the
pumping machine that provides potable water for the community. It is
necessary to view the Island as a portent ground for Foreign Terrorist
Organisation if the territorial integrity of Nigeria is to be guaranteed
through the Western corridor.

RESTRICTED