Nigeria’s insecurity crisis has reached a breaking point. Citizens are unsettled, businesses are nervous, and the financial system is strained. President Bola Tinubu’s declaration of a nationwide security emergency on November 26 was a stark reminder: traditional methods are no longer enough.
Kidnappings in Kebbi and Niger State and attacks in Borno, Zamfara, Yobe, and Kwara. Each incident underscores the same truth. Criminal groups move faster than the state can trace them. More manpower alone cannot fix this imbalance.
It is time to think differently. It is time to treat security like a product problem and AI as the tool that helps us redesign it.
1. From force to foresight
Nigeria’s current model leans heavily on recruitment and redeployment: 20,000 new police officers, expanded military intake, and VIP escorts reassigned to frontline duties. These steps show urgency, but they do not solve the deeper issue.
The real deficit is not strength, but visibility. Security agencies often cannot see threats early enough to prevent them. AI changes that equation.
Think of AI as a spotlight in the dark:
· Pattern recognition: Detects kidnapping trends before they escalate.
· Movement tracking: Flags suspicious vehicles across highways and rural borders.
· Anomaly detection: Spots unusual activity around schools, banks, and places of worship.
Instead of reacting after the fact, AI gives Nigeria the chance to anticipate danger.
2. Why AI is no longer optional
AI is already proving its worth in small pockets. In Lagos, private estates use AI-powered cameras and licence plate recognition to reduce break-ins. These controlled environments show what’s possible when objectives are clear.
And innovation is growing. A Lagos tech company recently unveiled an AI-powered security ecosystem designed for businesses and smart cities. The platform integrates smart cameras, predictive analytics, and automated monitoring to help organisations detect threats faster, reduce crime, and improve response times.
This system demonstrates how AI can:
· Spot anomalies in real time across large areas
· Predict potential risks before they escalate
· Support faster decision-making for security teams
By embedding AI into everyday environments, from estates to schools, this innovation shows how technology can strengthen trust and safety at scale.
Scaled nationally, AI offers something Nigeria’s security forces desperately need: faster, richer, more accurate information.
Imagine drones monitoring forest zones that human patrols rarely reach. Imagine camera systems that alert schools before danger strikes. Imagine analysts empowered by AI tools that sift through intelligence reports in seconds.
This is not science fiction. It is a roadmap waiting to be built.
3. The risks of blind adoption
AI is powerful, but it is not risk-free. Across Africa, imported “safe city” technologies have revealed flaws: faulty facial recognition, biased algorithms, and opaque data practices.
Nigeria must avoid these pitfalls. Without safeguards, AI could be misused for political monitoring or discrimination. Without strong data protection, sensitive information could be mishandled.
Trust is the foundation. Any system that undermines public confidence will collapse before it begins.
4. A smarter path forward
Nigeria does not need a nationwide rollout overnight. Instead, it should start with focused pilot projects in high-risk zones:
· The Abuja–Kaduna corridor
· School clusters in Niger and Kebbi
· Volatile communities in Zamfara and Borno
These pilots allow the government to test, measure, and build trust.
Equally important: local capacity. Nigerian engineers, universities, and security-tech firms must be part of the design. Systems built entirely abroad risk becoming black boxes, hard to maintain, and harder to adapt.
AI should integrate with existing strategies, not replace them. Community policing, informant networks, and local vigilance remain vital. Technology should strengthen these structures, not undermine them.
5. A turning point for Nigeria
Global concern is rising. Washington has already issued warnings. The world is watching.
AI will not erase poverty, weak policing, or slow judicial processes. But it can give Nigeria something it desperately needs: the ability to detect threats early, react faster, and prevent attacks before they escalate.
Insecurity has long been seen as a matter of force. Increasingly, it is a matter of information.
If deployed carefully, transparently, and with Nigerian expertise at its core, AI can help rebalance the fight and rebuild public confidence.
Final thoughts
Nigeria faces evolving threats. Its security strategy must evolve as well.
Think of AI not as a replacement for human intelligence, but as a co-pilot, a partner that helps security agencies see further, act faster, and protect better.
Detect. Prevent. Protect.
That is the new roadmap for Nigeria’s security future.
Agathas Agu is a product and programme management expert with a background in enterprise technology and experience as an Oracle Applications Developer. She combines technical skill with strategic leadership to drive digital transformation, streamline operations, and deliver user-focused solutions. Agathas is known for bridging business and technical teams to deliver impact at scale.
