In a bid to expose its female folks to be combat-ready amidst the growing security challenges, the Nigeria Army has said that the institution lacked female snipers and marksmen who would take the lead at the international level.
The Acting Commander, Nigeria Army Women’s Corps, Brigadier- General Preye Fakrogha, declared this at the opening of a three-day 2019 Nigeria Army Women’s Corps firing competition, held at the 177 Shitu Alao Barracks in Keffi.
He acknowledged that despite the achievements of the military authorities, “a major impediment to the success of our operations remains the dearth of female snipers and marksmen” in the force.
“We are thus seeking for opportunities to take part more frequently in both local and international firing exercises and competitions, which will greatly assist in building the much-needed weapon handling skills and proficiency of our women,” he said.
Fakrogha hoped that the exercise would improve on its effort to enhance the combat readiness and professional efficiency of the female military personnel.
He said that the firing exercise would allow Nigeria Army Women’s Corps to build on their previous experiences in a practical way and to practice the efficiency of her personal, which “has been made compulsory for the female soldiers in and around Abuja to enable those that have not been involved in any of their outings the opportunity to learn.”
He explained that, aside from observing and testing the weapon-handling ability of the female soldiers, the exercise would expose them to the fundamentals of marksmanship which included trigger control, follow through and proper breathing.
Other areas of focus during the 3-day training are to increase the confidence, abilities, and experience of the personnel, improve well balanced posture, shooter’s accuracy, speed, mobility, increased stamina, strength and dexterity.
He noted that, in order to enhance the effectiveness of its personnel, all these skills are important during an operational engagement, even as he called for the need to build the capacity of, especially female soldiers in areas of weapon handling to keep them abreast with their male counterparts.
