THE Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lt-Gen. Waidi Shaibu, has approved the appointment of General Officers Commanding (GOCs) the newly established four Divisions of the Nigerian Army, following the approval of their establishment by President Bola Tinubu for the establishment of four additional Divisions.
The Army said the “landmark development” was part of ongoing efforts to strengthen its force structure, expand its operational footprint, enhance command and control and improve its capacity to effectively respond to Nigeria’s evolving security challenges.
It stated that the newly established Divisions would immediately commence operations in the respective locations on attainment of Initial Operational Capability (IOC), while deliberate measures were being implemented to progressively attain Full Operational Capability (FOC) to ensure seamless take off, operational continuity and rapid force projection across the country.
The Nigerian Army, in a press release posted on its X handle on Wednesday, July 29, said it had undertaken a comprehensive reorganisation of its Divisional Areas of Responsibility.
Under the new structure, 1 Division Kaduna will be responsible for security in Kaduna, Kano, Katsina and Jigawa states, while 2 Division Ibadan will cover Oyo, Osun, Ekiti and Ondo states.
The 3 Division Jos will oversee Plateau, Bauchi and Gombe states. The newly established 5 Division, with headquarters in Makurdi, will assume responsibility for Benue, Nasarawa and Kogi states, while 6 Division, Port Harcourt, will cover Rivers, Akwa Ibom and Cross River states.
The 7 Division, Maiduguri, will be responsible for Borno and Yobe states, while 8 Division, Sokoto, will retain responsibility for Sokoto, Kebbi and Zamfara states.
In the same vein, the newly established 9 Division, with headquarters in Ilorin, will cover Kwara and Niger states, while the 10 Division, Jalingo, will be responsible for security in the border areas of Taraba and Adamawa states.
The 81 Division Lagos will continue to oversee Lagos and Ogun states, while 82 Division, Enugu, will retain responsibility for Enugu, Anambra, Abia, Ebonyi and Imo states.
The newly established 83 Division, with headquarters in Benin City, will cover Edo, Delta and Bayelsa states, when activated later this year.
For effective leadership for the new formations, the COAS approved the redeployed of Maj-Gen. Yakubu Yahaya from headquarters Joint Task Force (North Central), Operation SAVANNA SHIELD (OPSS), to Headquarters 9 Division, Ilorin, as GOC and Commander, Operation SAVANNA SHIELD.
Maj-Gen. Chinedu Nnebeife was redeployed from headquarters, 2 Division/Sector 3 Joint Task Force (North West), Operation FANSAN YAMMA, to headquarters, 10 Division, Jalingo, as GOC.
Maj-Gen. Moses Gara was redeployed from headquarters, Joint Task Force, Operation WHIRL STROKE (OPWS), to headquarters, 5 Division, Makurdi, as GOC/Commander, Joint Task Force, Operation WHIRL STROKE.
Recall that apart from approving the expansion of the Army’s structure from eight to 12 Divisions, Tinubu also approved the recruitment of 28,000 additional personnel, acquisition of critical military platforms and equipment, improvements in troop welfare and ongoing support for operational readiness and force modernisation.
The Presidency explained that the implementation of the new force structure would be done in two phases, with the first phase covering the establishment of the 5, 9, and 10 Divisions and the reorganisation of existing formations, which will be completed by September this year, while the second phase involves the establishment of the 83 Division and further reorganisation, expected to be completed by December this year.
