The Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lieutenant General Waidi Shaibu, has approved the appointment of General Officers Commanding (GOCs) to four newly established Nigerian Army Divisions following President Bola Tinubu’s approval for the expansion of the Army’s force structure to strengthen national security and improve the country’s response to growing security threats.
The appointments, announced on Wednesday by the Acting Director of Army Public Relations, Colonel Appolonia Anele, follow President Tinubu’s approval for the establishment of four additional Army Divisions as part of a major reorganisation aimed at expanding the Nigerian Army’s operational footprint, strengthening command and control, and improving its capacity to respond to Nigeria’s evolving security challenges.
According to the statement, the newly established Divisions will immediately begin operations in their respective locations upon attaining Initial Operational Capability (IOC), while measures are being implemented to progressively achieve Full Operational Capability (FOC).
The Army said the phased activation is designed to ensure seamless operationalisation, operational continuity and rapid force projection across the country.
As part of the restructuring, the Nigerian Army has also reorganised its Divisional Areas of Responsibility across the federation.
Under the new operational structure, 1 Division, Kaduna, will be responsible for Kaduna, Kano, Katsina and Jigawa states, while 2 Division, Ibadan, will oversee security operations in Oyo, Osun, Ekiti and Ondo states.
The 3 Division, Jos, will cover Plateau, Bauchi and Gombe states.
The newly established 5 Division, headquartered in Makurdi, will assume responsibility for Benue, Nasarawa and Kogi states, while 6 Division, Port Harcourt, will oversee Rivers, Akwa Ibom and Cross River states.
The 7 Division, Maiduguri, will retain responsibility for Borno and Yobe states, while 8 Division, Sokoto, will continue to oversee Sokoto, Kebbi and Zamfara states.
The newly created 9 Division, headquartered in Ilorin, will cover Kwara and Niger states, while the newly established 10 Division, with headquarters in Jalingo, will be responsible for securing the border areas of Taraba and Adamawa states.
Similarly, 81 Division Lagos will continue to oversee Lagos and Ogun states, while 82 Division Enugu will retain responsibility for Enugu, Anambra, Abia, Ebonyi and Imo states.
The Army also disclosed that the newly established 83 Division, headquartered in Benin City, will oversee Edo, Delta and Bayelsa states when it becomes operational later this year.
To provide leadership for the new formations, Lieutenant General Shaibu approved the deployment of several senior officers to head the divisions.
Major General Yakubu Yahaya was redeployed from the Headquarters Joint Task Force (North Central), Operation SAVANNA SHIELD (OPSS), to Headquarters 9 Division, Ilorin, where he will serve as General Officer Commanding (GOC) and Commander of Operation SAVANNA SHIELD.
Major General Chinedu Ralph Nnebeife was redeployed from Headquarters 2 Division/Sector 3 Joint Task Force (North West), Operation FANSAN YAMMA, to Headquarters 10 Division, Jalingo, as General Officer Commanding.
(GOC).
Also, Major General Moses Gara was moved from Headquarters Joint Task Force Operations.
