In Nigeria, the Federal Government has approved the establishment of a new Nigerian Army depot in Abakaliki, Ebonyi State, to strengthen security and military capacity across the country. The decision was approved by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and announced on Saturday.
The approval was made known by the President’s Special Assistant on Social Media, Dada Olusegun, who said the new facility increases the number of army depots in the country to three. The existing depots are located in Kaduna and Osogbo, which have served the military for many years.
The new depot in Ebonyi is expected to support the training and deployment of more troops. According to the Chief of Army Staff, Major General Waidi Shaibu, the move is part of efforts to improve the strength of the Nigerian Army in response to security challenges across different parts of the country.
He explained that about 3,500 additional soldiers will be trained at the Abakaliki depot, while another batch of 3,500 troops is expected to arrive from Osogbo next week. The soldiers will undergo advanced infantry training before being deployed to various operational areas.
The training programme will include the use of modern tools such as indoor shooting ranges to improve soldiers’ shooting skills and readiness. The army also plans to provide further specialist training to prepare the troops for field operations.
The new depot is expected to improve the army’s ability to respond to security threats and increase the number of trained personnel available for deployment nationwide.