The National Coordinator of the National Counter Terrorism Centre, Office of the National Security Adviser (NCTC–ONSA), Major General Adamu Laka, has called for the inclusion of critical stakeholders—particularly the media, telecommunication operators, and social media platforms—into Nigeria’s kidnapping response framework.
He said such integration was necessary to address the operational gaps identified during the implementation of the Multi-Agency Kidnap Fusion Cell, which is domiciled in the Centre.
Speaking at a High-Level Stakeholders’ Workshop on the operations of the Fusion Cell, General Laka urged participants to raise key concerns, share their experiences, and recommend practical solutions that would enhance national efforts in rescuing victims, dismantling kidnap syndicates, and improving community safety.
“Despite notable successes, certain operational gaps have been identified, particularly the need to integrate key stakeholders such as the media, telecommunication operators, and social media platforms into the kidnapping response framework,” he said.
He added that the workshop presented a timely opportunity to examine how these stakeholders could be seamlessly incorporated into the Fusion Cell’s architecture to bolster the country’s kidnap management capacity.
“Over the next few hours, you will be briefed on the Cell’s activities and engage in insightful discussions aimed at exploring innovative and collaborative approaches to strengthening coordination, refining operational procedures, and enhancing our collective response capabilities,” he told participants.
General Laka noted that the workshop was part of ongoing efforts by the Centre to improve coordination, intelligence sharing, and operational synergy in the fight against kidnapping.
He observed that Nigeria continued to confront a range of security challenges—including terrorism, banditry, separatist violence, and farmer–herder conflicts—with kidnapping emerging as a common and pervasive element across these threats.
“What was once an opportunistic crime has evolved into a persistent and destabilising enterprise, serving as a major source of financing for criminal and terrorist networks. It enables these groups to procure logistics, maintain their reign of terror, and, in some cases, exert territorial control,” he said.
The escalating domestic and international concern over kidnapping, he explained, prompted strategic collaboration between the governments of Nigeria and the United Kingdom, resulting in the establishment of the Multi-Agency Kidnap Fusion Cell within the NCTC.
He described the initiative as aligning with the Centre’s mandate to coordinate counterterrorism efforts nationwide and its ambition to become a Regional Centre of Excellence in West Africa and the Sahel.
Also speaking at the event, the Acting British High Commissioner to Nigeria, Gill Lever, described the Fusion Cell as a significant advancement in Nigeria’s response to the growing scourge of kidnapping.
She emphasised that kidnapping poses a real and immediate threat, traumatising families, destabilising communities, undermining economic progress, and damaging a nation’s international standing.
Lever said the initiative was conceived as a Nigerian-led solution, supported by international expertise but tailored to address the country’s specific security realities.
The objective, she noted, has always been to foster a multi-agency approach capable of deploying diverse resources to counter both the threat and impact of kidnapping.
Linus Aleke
The National Coordinator of the National Counter Terrorism Centre, Office of the National Security Adviser (NCTC–ONSA), Major General Adamu Laka, has called for the inclusion of critical stakeholders—particularly the media, telecommunication operators, and social media platforms—into Nigeria’s kidnapping response framework.
He said such integration was necessary to address the operational gaps identified during the implementation of the Multi-Agency Kidnap Fusion Cell, which is domiciled in the Centre.
Speaking at a High-Level Stakeholders’ Workshop on the operations of the Fusion Cell, General Laka urged participants to raise key concerns, share their experiences, and recommend practical solutions that would enhance national efforts in rescuing victims, dismantling kidnap syndicates, and improving community safety.
“Despite notable successes, certain operational gaps have been identified, particularly the need to integrate key stakeholders such as the media, telecommunication operators, and social media platforms into the kidnapping response framework,” he said.
He added that the workshop presented a timely opportunity to examine how these stakeholders could be seamlessly incorporated into the Fusion Cell’s architecture to bolster the country’s kidnap management capacity.
“Over the next few hours, you will be briefed on the Cell’s activities and engage in insightful discussions aimed at exploring innovative and collaborative approaches to strengthening coordination, refining operational procedures, and enhancing our collective response capabilities,” he told participants.
General Laka noted that the workshop was part of ongoing efforts by the Centre to improve coordination, intelligence sharing, and operational synergy in the fight against kidnapping.
He observed that Nigeria continued to confront a range of security challenges—including terrorism, banditry, separatist violence, and farmer–herder conflicts—with kidnapping emerging as a common and pervasive element across these threats.
“What was once an opportunistic crime has evolved into a persistent and destabilising enterprise, serving as a major source of financing for criminal and terrorist networks. It enables these groups to procure logistics, maintain their reign of terror, and, in some cases, exert territorial control,” he said.
The escalating domestic and international concern over kidnapping, he explained, prompted strategic collaboration between the governments of Nigeria and the United Kingdom, resulting in the establishment of the Multi-Agency Kidnap Fusion Cell within the NCTC.
He described the initiative as aligning with the Centre’s mandate to coordinate counterterrorism efforts nationwide and its ambition to become a Regional Centre of Excellence in West Africa and the Sahel.
Also speaking at the event, the Acting British High Commissioner to Nigeria, Gill Lever, described the Fusion Cell as a significant advancement in Nigeria’s response to the growing scourge of kidnapping.
She emphasised that kidnapping poses a real and immediate threat, traumatising families, destabilising communities, undermining economic progress, and damaging a nation’s international standing.
Lever said the initiative was conceived as a Nigerian-led solution, supported by international expertise but tailored to address the country’s specific security realities.
The objective, she noted, has always been to foster a multi-agency approach capable of deploying diverse resources to counter both the threat and impact of kidnapping.
Linus Aleke
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