The Federal Government has graduated 7,000 newly trained Forest Guards in a coordinated exercise held on Saturday across seven states in northern Nigeria.
The parades took place simultaneously in Borno, Sokoto, Yobe, Adamawa, Niger, Kwara and Kebbi states under the coordination of the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA), in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Environment, the Department of State Services (DSS) and the National Park Service.
The initiative forms part of ongoing efforts to strengthen environmental security and improve protection of Nigeria’s forest reserves and national parks.
The deployment of trained Forest Guards is also expected to support the fight against illegal logging, wildlife trafficking and other environmental crimes, while complementing broader national security operations.
The graduates underwent specialised training delivered jointly by security and environmental agencies to prepare them for frontline duties in forest communities and protected areas.
Officials say the joint coordination is designed to ensure better intelligence-sharing, stronger inter-agency collaboration and improved security presence in remote locations where criminal activities often go undetected.
The newly-trained personnel are expected to be deployed to their respective duty posts in the coming weeks.
