The Federal Government has earmarked over ₦13.12 billion for the procurement of arms, ammunition and related equipment for Nigeria’s security agencies in the 2026 appropriation bills.
Budget documents show that a total of ₦13,124,747,575 has been allocated across key security institutions for weapons acquisition and protective equipment.
Under the proposal, the Ministry of Defence will receive ₦688.8 million for the purchase of arms and ammunition for the Armed Forces, while the Defence Headquarters is allocated ₦1.46 billion for similar procurements.
The Nigerian Air Force accounts for the largest share of the allocation, with ₦6.13 billion set aside for various aircraft platforms, arms and ammunition.
In addition, the Air Force is expected to spend ₦1.79 billion on the procurement of 2,000 AR-M5T assault rifles.
The Nigerian Immigration Service has been allocated ₦702.7 million for arms, ammunition, webbing and ballistic protection equipment, while the Nigeria Police Force will receive ₦1.03 billion for arms, ammunition and protective gear.
The Department of State Services is expected to spend ₦1 billion on arms and ammunition under the 2026 budget.
Other beneficiaries include the National Park Headquarters, which is to procure 100 firearms and ammunition with ₦68.8 million, and the Nigerian Defence Academy, which will deploy ₦253.5 million for the acquisition of automatic rifles and magazines for cadet training.
The allocations follow a sharp decline in Nigeria’s spending on arms and ammunition in 2025.
Data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed that arms and ammunition imports dropped to about ₦49 billion in 2025, compared with ₦520 billion recorded in 2024.
According to the NBS foreign trade reports, arms imports stood at ₦22.08 billion in the first quarter of 2025, declined to ₦4.87 billion in the second quarter, before rising to ₦23.49 billion in the third quarter.
The figures were compiled from multiple sources, including the Nigeria Customs Service, the Central Bank of Nigeria, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, oil and gas firms, private sector operators, as well as aviation and port authorities.
Analysts note that unless further procurements are approved, Nigeria’s arms acquisition spending could decline further in 2026 despite mounting security challenges across the country.
The PUNCH
