Nigerian Army establishes new division in Borno, South South

Chief of Army Staff, Tukur Buratai, a lieutenant general, has announced the establishment of the Nigerian Army 8 Division located in the Northern part of Borno.

Buratai disclosed this while delivering a lecture titled `Nigerian Army: Challenges and Future Perspectives,’ at the National Defence College, Abuja.

He said the establishment of the new division was part of strategic plan by the army to boost military operations against terrorists, particularly in areas around the Lake Chad Basin.

It would be recalled that the Nigerian Army command in August 2013, during the administration of Goodluck Jonathan, established the 7^th Infantry Division in Maiduguri to boost the military’s counter-insurgency operations in the North East.

According to PRNigeria, though details of the new establishment were not disclosed, Buratai said the division would soon become fully operational with logistics and manpower deployments.

Buratai also added that plans were underway to establish another division to be known as the Nigerian Army 6 Division with Headquarters in the South-South region of the country.

He also said the army would embark on an ambitious expansion programme to address manpower needs of the force to respond appropriately to contemporary threats to national security.

With plan to increase its personnel strength from its present 100,000 strength-force to slightly above 200,000 in the next eight years, 12,000 personnel are expected to be recruited in 2016 alone to fill the vacancies created as a result of the new establishments in the army.

He said the establishment of the new divisions was part of a strategic plan to improve on the Nigerian Army’s operational capabilities in the face of emerging threats to national security.

The establishment of the additional formations, according to him, would bring the number of divisions in the Nigerian Army to eight.

“Emerging threats to the security of our nation which has been aggravated by the proliferation of armed groups has added to the task of the military in protecting the lives of Nigerians and the integrity of its territory.

“The focus of the Nigerian Army, today, is to find lasting solutions to these contemporary threats posed by the activities of the armed groups and their allies,” he said.