WHO WILL DEFEND NIGERIA? The Recruitment and Retention Crisis Facing the Nigerian Army

Abstract

A security analyst's policy brief examining Nigeria's military recruitment and retention crisis amid expanding security demands. Drawing on field observation and community engagement across South-East Nigeria, the brief argues that declining enlistment and rising cases of personnel absence stem not from insufficient recruitment drives, but from institutional trust deficits and the structural disparity between officer and enlisted treatment. The brief concludes with a policy action matrix mapping identified problems to specific institutional responses, timelines, and expected outcomes.