The Director General of the National Centre for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons, retired DIG Johnson Kokumo, has said Nigeria is strengthening its security architecture by developing a new cadre of specialists trained to prevent the theft, diversion and misuse of weapons and ammunition.

Speaking at the graduation of the second batch of the Capacity Development Program on Physical Security and Stockpile Management, Kokumo said the training had equipped personnel from 15 arms bearing agencies with critical skills, bringing the total trained to 90.

“Around the world, incidents involving theft, diversion, loss of authorized assets, accidental explosions and poor stockpile practices continue to pose significant threats to national security, public safety and socio-economic development,” he said.

He said graduates had acquired competencies in risk assessment, inventory control, storage safety, surveillance and stockpile destruction, all grounded in international standards, and urged them to translate the knowledge into action as ambassadors of best practice. Kokumo commended National Security Adviser Nuhu Ribadu, The HALO Trust and the Kingdom of the Netherlands for their support. Netherlands envoy Bengt van Loosdrecht, represented by Ronald Sonnemans, and HALO Trust Country Director Richard Goss described the program as a vital step toward safe and secure weapons management