The National Centre for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons (NCCSLAW) has warned against the diversion of officially procured weapons.
Retired DIG Johnson Kokumo, National Coordinator of the centre, issued the warning on Monday at the inauguration of a capacity development programme on Arms Physical Security and Stockpile Management for arms-bearing security agencies in Abuja.
Kokumo said lapses in weapons management continued to undermine national security, stressing that weak control systems had created vulnerabilities in armoury oversight. He noted that assessments suggested a significant proportion of illegal arms in circulation may have originated from official stockpiles over time.
“A significant portion of illegal arms in circulation today passed through official channels at some point,” he said.
He added that while security agencies had intensified efforts against illicit arms proliferation, weaknesses in stockpile management remained a persistent challenge requiring urgent reform. Weapons in official custody must be properly secured, documented, and strictly monitored to prevent diversion to criminal or armed groups.
“If we fail to properly account for these weapons, we are indirectly empowering criminal networks and terrorist groups operating within and outside our borders,” Kokumo warned. He highlighted poor record-keeping, weak oversight, and inadequate storage systems as key gaps that must be urgently addressed.
The centre is collaborating with national and international partners to strengthen audit systems, enhance stockpile security, and improve compliance frameworks across security agencies. “Securing official weapons is not optional; it is a critical component of national security architecture,” he said.
Mr. Jacob Nyaga, Operations Manager at Halo Trust, said the programme, funded by the Kingdom of the Netherlands, aims to equip personnel with modern skills for armoury management and prevention of weapon diversion. The training will run in three phases: practical skills for stock keepers, leadership-level management including risk assessment, and a train-the-trainer phase to sustain institutional capacity.
Nyaga emphasized that the initiative was designed to strengthen and optimise existing systems, not to highlight capacity gaps, and expressed optimism that it would enable agencies to maintain internal capacity-building independently.
