The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) has called for deeper collaboration with the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) Mining Marshals to combat the growing connections between illegal mining, organised crime, and terrorism across Nigeria, West Africa, and the Sahel.
The request was made during a strategic visit by a UNODC delegation to the specialised unit, where international officials commended its expanding role in tackling illicit resource extraction. The details were disclosed in a statement released on Monday in Abuja by the Commander of the Mining Marshals, Assistant Commandant of Corps John Attah.
The UNODC delegation was led by Tullio Santini, Chief of the Africa Section of the Terrorism Prevention Branch, who praised the unit’s enforcement achievements.
“The rising number of arrests and prosecutions is evidence of Nigeria’s commitment to tackling the illicit trade,” Santini stated.
During the meeting, Robert Haslinger, a law enforcement expert from the Swedish Police, introduced the UNODC Coordination through Operational Networks against the Crime-Terrorism Nexus (CONNECT) Initiative. Set to launch in November 2026 with Nigeria invited to participate, the initiative aims to enhance international cooperation to disrupt financial and operational ties between criminal syndicates and terrorist groups.
Attah, representing NSCDC Commandant-General Prof Ahmed Audi, welcomed the delegation and advocated for the unit’s formal inclusion in the project.
“We also use this opportunity to advocate for the formal inclusion of the Mining Marshals in the CONNECT Initiative because disrupting the financial foundations of terrorist organisations requires greater attention to the illegal exploitation of mineral resources,” Attah said.
Attah noted that officers report to the Ministry of Interior, the Ministry of Solid Minerals Development, and the NSCDC. He explained that whilst their main mandate is suppressing illegal mining, they also support broader national security tasks.
Attah added that previous UNODC training had boosted joint operations with the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit, and he called for further capacity-building programmes focusing on terrorism concepts, regional intelligence sharing, and peer learning.
“The previous UNODC-supported training programmes had significantly improved collaboration between the Mining Marshals and the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit, enhancing the ability of both institutions to coordinate investigations and intelligence-led operations against illegal mining syndicates,” Attah stated.
Delegation members commended the Mining Marshals’ broad operational mandate, which spans intelligence gathering, arrests, investigations, and prosecutions, as well as their use of non-kinetic approaches such as community outreach and stakeholder engagement.
The visit formed part of a wider UNODC mission to engage development partners, strengthen local security partnerships, and review field operations in response to concerns that proceeds from illegal mining are increasingly funding regional insecurity. The meeting concluded with symbolic publication exchanges, photographs, and renewed commitments to joint action.