Musa Ubandawaki, Sokoto
The Kukah Centre for Leadership and Faith has entered into a strategic partnership with the Centre for Peace Studies (CPS), Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto (UDUS), to undertake a comprehensive research on the legal and governance frameworks regulating locally recruited security outfits operating across Nigeria.
The collaboration, formalised through the signing of a research agreement in Sokoto, will examine the legality, operational scope, funding mechanisms, legitimacy and accountability structures of non-conventional security outfits established by state governments, particularly to safeguard rural communities facing persistent insecurity.
Speaking at the signing ceremony, the Director of the Centre for Peace Studies, Professor Uthman Abdulkadir, said the Centre, established in 2007, is a non-governmental and non-profit research institution focused on producing policy relevant research that advances peace building and national development.
Professor Abdulkadir explained that the partnership would generate evidence-based findings on the legal frameworks guiding local security recruitment by state actors, while also interrogating operational limitations, funding sources and institutional support systems.
According to him, the study will further explore sensitive issues such as legitimacy, ethnic profiling and grey areas surrounding the growing presence of non-state and quasi-state security actors, with the aim of identifying gaps and proposing practical, lawful pathways forward.
He noted that community policing and local security initiatives have gained renewed attention as Nigeria prepares for the 2027 general elections, a period expected to heighten concerns over election security and post-election stability.
“Questions are already being raised about whether these local security outfits can deliver impartial, lawful and effective security during campaigns and after the elections,” Abdulkadir said.
In his remarks, the Project Manager at the Kukah Centre for Leadership and Faith, Mr. Bamber Terseer, said the initiative aligns with the Centre’s commitment to strengthening community based security systems for accountable service delivery, peace building and national resilience.
Mr. Terseer disclosed that the project is supported by the United Kingdom’s international development partners, including SPRING and Tetra Tech, and is designed to enhance the effectiveness of local security outfits ahead of the 2027 polls.
He said the research would provide clear policy direction by engaging critical stakeholders on security related challenges capable of affecting electoral processes and social cohesion nationwide.
According to him, the Kukah Centre remains committed to promoting a peaceful environment in which citizens can freely and safely exercise their civic responsibilities without fear or intimidation.
Mr. Terseer added that the research commenced on February 2, immediately after the signing of the agreement, to ensure timely outcomes capable of informing policy decisions well before the 2027 elections.
He explained that the project reinforces the Kukah Centre’s good governance and knowledge promotion agenda, particularly efforts aimed at improving community security initiatives and encouraging active citizen participation in governance.
As part of the study, conflict and situational analyses will be conducted in Benue, Kaduna and Sokoto states to assess the legal contexts in which local security outfits operate, identify existing gaps and propose best-practice frameworks that state governments can adopt for sustainable and accountable operations.
The project will also provide platforms for inclusive stakeholder engagement, bringing together community leaders, policymakers, civil society actors and security experts to review and validate proposed frameworks to ensure they are context-appropriate and widely acceptable.
Contributing to the discussion, a member of the research team, Professor Tukur Baba, traced the emergence and polarisation of local security outfits to long-standing conflicts, particularly farmers–herders disputes that have disrupted previously peaceful coexistence.
Professor Baba cautioned against ethnic or tribal profiling of crime, stressing that criminality should not be associated with any ethnic group.
“There is no justification for linking crime to any tribe or ethnicity,” he said, noting that understanding the evolving dynamics of crime is essential to developing effective security responses.
He added that objective research and inclusive dialogue remain crucial to addressing insecurity without deepening social divisions, especially during a politically sensitive pre-election period.
The partnership is expected to contribute meaningfully to national debates on security sector reform, community policing and democratic stability as Nigeria moves closer to the 2027 general elections.
