The House of Representatives has urged the federal government to adopt a strategic National Drone Industrialisation Policy to strengthen Nigeria’s defence manufacturing capacity and reduce the country’s dependence on imported unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).
The resolution followed the adoption of a motion sponsored by Ademorin Kuye (APC, Lagos) during plenary on Wednesday.
Presenting the motion, Mr Kuye said Nigeria continued to face persistent and evolving security threats, including terrorism, banditry, kidnapping, insurgency and pipeline vandalism, which had placed sustained pressure on the operational capacity of the Armed Forces and other security agencies.
He said drones had become indispensable tools in modern warfare, intelligence gathering, surveillance and counter-insurgency operations, noting that non-state armed groups were increasingly deploying the technology against Nigerian troops.
“Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), commonly known as drones, have become indispensable tools of modern warfare, intelligence gathering, surveillance, and counterinsurgency operations globally, and non-state armed groups, including Boko Haram and the Islamic State of West Africa Province (ISWAP), are already deploying commercial drones against Nigerian troops,” he said.
