Key Takeaways
- • National Security Adviser Nuhu Ribadu and the African Union Counter-Terrorism Centre warned on Tuesday in Abuja that groups including ISWAP, Boko Haram and JNIM are using social media, cryptocurrencies, drones and AI to recruit, finance and coordinate operations across West Africa and the Sahel.
- • Acting AU Counter-Terrorism Centre Director Idriss Lalalli said terrorist cells can now reach audiences far beyond their physical presence on modest budgets, and that counter-capability is thinly and unevenly distributed across Member States.
- • A three-day regional training conference in Abuja is building skills in cyber threat intelligence, open-source intelligence, digital forensics and blockchain analysis, with participants from ECOWAS, the Multinational Joint Task Force and international organisations.
- • Officials called for stronger partnerships with social media companies, telecoms operators and financial service providers, since much of the exploited digital infrastructure is privately owned.
- • Nigeria is seeking AU accreditation for the National Counter Terrorism Centre (NCTC) as a regional centre of excellence for counterterrorism in West Africa and the Sahel.
Summary
National Security Adviser Nuhu Ribadu and the African Union Counter-Terrorism Centre raised alarm over terrorist groups' growing use of social media, cryptocurrencies and emerging technologies to recruit members, finance operations and coordinate attacks across West Africa and the Sahel. The warning was issued on Tuesday in Abuja at a three-day regional training conference on detecting and disrupting terrorist exploitation of information and communication technologies.
Acting AU Counter-Terrorism Centre Director Idriss Lalalli said the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), Boko Haram and Jama'at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM) were extending their reach through digital platforms. According to Lalalli, the groups recruit on social media, move and conceal funds via mobile money, gift cards and cryptocurrencies, acquire weapons through darknet marketplaces, communicate via satellite links, deploy drones across borders and use artificial intelligence to customise propaganda and evade detection. He said the speed and affordability of these tools let networks operate faster than security agencies can respond, and that the capacity to counter them remains thinly and unevenly distributed across Member States.
Speaking on behalf of Ribadu, National Counter Terrorism Centre (NCTC) National Coordinator Maj.-Gen. Adamu Laka said AI can rapidly produce personalised content, drones and autonomous systems can expand operational capabilities, and virtual assets can create new financing channels. Ribadu stressed that an effective response requires investment in technical expertise, institutional capacity and inter-agency cooperation, not only sophisticated equipment, and called for stronger cross-border intelligence sharing. "Nigeria recognises that no institution, country or sector can defeat terrorism alone," he said.
The training programme covers cyber threat intelligence, open-source intelligence, digital forensics and blockchain analysis, aimed at identifying online recruitment networks, preserving digital evidence and tracing cryptocurrency transactions linked to terrorist financing. Lalalli also urged partnerships with social media companies, telecommunications operators and financial service providers. Participants include representatives from West Africa and the Sahel, the African Union, ECOWAS, the Multinational Joint Task Force, regional intelligence structures and international organisations.
Ribadu disclosed that Nigeria is working with the AU Counter-Terrorism Centre to secure accreditation for the NCTC as a regional centre of excellence for counterterrorism in West Africa and the Sahel. He said the initiative followed President Bola Tinubu's declaration at the High-Level Africa Counterterrorism Summit in April 2024. The article is sourced from PRNigeria.
Acting AU Counter-Terrorism Centre Director Idriss Lalalli said the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), Boko Haram and Jama'at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM) were extending their reach through digital platforms. According to Lalalli, the groups recruit on social media, move and conceal funds via mobile money, gift cards and cryptocurrencies, acquire weapons through darknet marketplaces, communicate via satellite links, deploy drones across borders and use artificial intelligence to customise propaganda and evade detection. He said the speed and affordability of these tools let networks operate faster than security agencies can respond, and that the capacity to counter them remains thinly and unevenly distributed across Member States.
Speaking on behalf of Ribadu, National Counter Terrorism Centre (NCTC) National Coordinator Maj.-Gen. Adamu Laka said AI can rapidly produce personalised content, drones and autonomous systems can expand operational capabilities, and virtual assets can create new financing channels. Ribadu stressed that an effective response requires investment in technical expertise, institutional capacity and inter-agency cooperation, not only sophisticated equipment, and called for stronger cross-border intelligence sharing. "Nigeria recognises that no institution, country or sector can defeat terrorism alone," he said.
The training programme covers cyber threat intelligence, open-source intelligence, digital forensics and blockchain analysis, aimed at identifying online recruitment networks, preserving digital evidence and tracing cryptocurrency transactions linked to terrorist financing. Lalalli also urged partnerships with social media companies, telecommunications operators and financial service providers. Participants include representatives from West Africa and the Sahel, the African Union, ECOWAS, the Multinational Joint Task Force, regional intelligence structures and international organisations.
Ribadu disclosed that Nigeria is working with the AU Counter-Terrorism Centre to secure accreditation for the NCTC as a regional centre of excellence for counterterrorism in West Africa and the Sahel. He said the initiative followed President Bola Tinubu's declaration at the High-Level Africa Counterterrorism Summit in April 2024. The article is sourced from PRNigeria.
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