Nigeria is advancing the structured expansion of Operation Safe Corridor, convening federal, state and international stakeholders in Abuja to finalise modalities for the transfer of rehabilitated clients to national and subnational authorities for reintegration.
Desk: Defence & National Security
Date: Thursday, 19 February 2026
Time: 16:10 WAT
Location: Abuja, Nigeria
A statement issued by Director, Defence Information, Major General Samaila Uba said the high-level meeting, held at the Nigerian Army Resource Centre, signals a consolidation phase for the Disarmament, Rehabilitation and Reintegration framework as authorities seek clearer state ownership and coordinated post-camp monitoring structures.
Delivering the keynote address, Chief of Defence Staff and Chairman of the OPSC National Steering Committee, General Olufemi Oluyede, represented by Chief of Defence Operations, Major General Jamal Abdusalam, described Operation Safe Corridor as a stabilisation instrument within Nigeria’s broader counterinsurgency architecture. He noted that while kinetic operations disrupt insurgent formations, structured rehabilitation prevents the recycling of violence by converting surrender pathways into monitored reintegration channels.
Since its establishment in 2016, Operation Safe Corridor has processed thousands of individuals under a controlled screening and ideological disengagement system. Defence authorities argue that structured surrender mechanisms degrade insurgent cohesion, generate intelligence and reduce long-term conflict recurrence when properly coordinated with civil authorities.
The Abuja engagement brought together representatives of federal ministries, the Office of the National Security Adviser, state governments and neighbouring countries including Burkina Faso, Chad, Niger and Cameroon. International partners such as Norway, the United Kingdom, the European Union, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, the International Committee of the Red Cross and the International Organization for Migration also participated, reflecting the transnational and humanitarian dimensions of the programme.
Providing operational updates, Coordinator of Operation Safe Corridor, Brigadier General Yusuf Ali, disclosed that 117 clients from Borno State recently completed the DRR process at Mallam Sidi Camp, marking a strengthened federal–state harmonisation effort in reception and community reintegration monitoring.
He also confirmed the expansion of the programme to the North West, where a DRR facility established in February last year represents a stabilisation intervention beyond the North East theatre. Ongoing consultations with Zamfara State are expected to recalibrate the facility into a broader Victim Healing, Rehabilitation and Reintegration framework integrating psychosocial recovery, livelihood support and structured monitoring.
In the North Central region, Benue State has formally requested the establishment of a DRR camp. Defence Headquarters has conducted site assessments and advised that proposed facilities must align with national infrastructure, security and sustainability benchmarks before approval.
The current stakeholders’ meeting is expected to clarify the roles of state authorities and MDAs, define structured resettlement support systems, determine community sensitisation protocols and ratify graduation timelines for rehabilitated clients.
Operation Safe Corridor remains one of Nigeria’s most debated counterinsurgency components. Supporters view it as a cost-effective stabilisation strategy that complements military pressure with reintegration safeguards.
Critics have questioned monitoring durability and community acceptance frameworks. The expansion phase now underway suggests Defence Headquarters is seeking stronger institutional coherence and state-level anchoring to consolidate earlier gains.
The outcome of these reforms will determine whether the programme transitions from a theatre-specific disengagement initiative into a nationally standardised reintegration policy model embedded within Nigeria’s long-term security recovery architecture.
🏷️Tags: Operation Safe Corridor, Reintegration Policy, Counterinsurgency Strategy, Defence Headquarters, Disarmament Rehabilitation Reintegration, Peacebuilding Nigeria, National Security Reform
#Nigeria #OperationSafeCorridor #Reintegration #Counterinsurgency #Peacebuilding #NationalSecurity #DefencePolicy
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