The House of Representatives has passed for second reading a bill seeking to establish the Joint Doctrine and Warfare Centre, a think-thank for Nigeria's military and paramilitary forces aimed at enhancing capacity, discipline, and excellence.

Speaker of the House, Rt. Hon. Abbas Tajudeen, Ph.D., GCON, sponsored the legislation, titled ‘A Bill for an Act to Establish the Joint Doctrine Warfare Centre to enhance the Coordination and Effectiveness of Military Operations of Armed Forces of Nigeria, by Integrating the Capabilities of Its Respective Services; and For Related Matters (HB. 2741). 

The proposed Joint Doctrine Warfare Centre is to generate ideas and propose mechanisms that can strengthen the country’s security architecture in response to the emerging security issues, according to a press statement by the Speaker's Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Musa Abdullahi Krishi.

Leading the debate on general principles on the bill on behalf of the Speaker, Hon. Daniel Asama Ago said the proposed centre seeks to provide for a comprehensive framework for the development, validation, and dissemination of joint military doctrines across the armed forces and initiate and coordinate interdisciplinary studies on multi-domain operation.

He added that the think-tank, which has the defence ministers, service chiefs, and security experts in the private sector as members, would integrate warfare strategies and emerging threats and provide strategic direction for enhancing synergy, defence and security operations; evaluate operational requirements; and liaise with national defence academics, international partners, and international research institutions on joint doctrine, simulation technologies, and warfare concepts.

He said, “My respected colleagues, as we are all aware, Nigeria faces complex security challenges, including terrorism, insurgency, and cyber warfare, requiring strategic doctrinal coordination among the Armed Forces. The absence of a dedicated institution for joint military doctrine formulation has created operational gaps and limited interoperability among the services.

“This bill seeks to address this deficiency in Nigeria’s defence architecture by providing an institutional and legal framework to the recently established Joint Doctrine and Warfare Centre as a think-tank and centre of excellence for doctrine development and warfare strategy, addressing the need for integrated doctrine development, unified command thinking, and joint operational planning.”

He added, “This bill is strategic and timely, addressing Nigeria’s evolving security threats and promoting interoperability among the Armed Forces. It establishes a permanent platform for defence research, simulation, and policy coordination, enhancing national security sustainability.”

The key aspects of the centre include: modernising Nigeria’s approach to hybrid, asymmetric, and transnational threats; strengthening interoperability among the Army, Navy, and Air Force; enhancing defence research and strategic studies; and fostering regional and international defence cooperation.

“This bill seeks to strengthen Nigeria’s defence architecture, promoting synergy, preparedness, and military excellence. The Joint Doctrine and Warfare Centre will serve as the intellectual and operational hub for defence coordination, doctrine formulation, and integrated warfare planning.

“I therefore urge my respected colleagues to support that this bill be read for a second time and referred to the relevant committee for further legislative action, please. I so move.”

Lawmakers unanimously voted in support of the bill when put into voice vote. And the bill was thereafter referred to the Committee on  Defence for further legislative action.