Communities’ involvement key to countering terrorism threats – Centre

Communities’ involvement key to countering terrorism threats – Centre

The National Coordinator, National Counter Terrorism Centre – Office of the National Security Adviser (NCTC-ONSA), Maj.-Gen. Adamu Laka says active involvement of communities and other stakeholders is key to countering terrorism threats.

Laka said this at the opening of the National Counter Terrorism Strategy (NACTEST) stakeholders meeting on Tuesday in Abuja.

He said the meeting was at a pivotal juncture in the review of NACTEST as the terrorism threat landscape continues to evolve in complexity and scale.

The coordinator said the responses to the threats must also be adaptive, collaborative, and forward-looking.

Laka added that the approach had been anchored on two fundamental pillars, the whole-of-government and the whole-of-society approach.

According to him, the whole-of-government approach underscores the need for seamless interagency coordination.

“In the context of the recent crisis, the Ministry of Education has done an excellent job in providing a comprehensive and effective approach to counter-terrorism.

“It is only through this unity that we can effectively identify vulnerabilities, disrupt terrorist networks and prevent attacks before they occur.

“Terrorism is not just a security threat, but also, a social and ideological one.

“Therefore, countering it requires the active involvement of communities, civil society organisations, religious and traditional leaders, and the private sector,” he said.

He said the idea was to build trust, strengthen social cohesion, and actively counter extremist narratives at the grassroots.

Laka said the initial draft of the revised NACTEST had been successfully developed.

He urged the participants to carefully review the draft strategy, provide constructive feedback, and take responsibility for implementing the recommendations that fall within their mandate.

Read Also: Assessing NAPTIP’s recent onslaught on trafficking, SGBV

The coordinator said the goal was to ensure that the implementation of the strategy serves as a practical and dynamic framework that drives real and measurable impacts in counterterrorism efforts.

In his remarks, Commodore Ahmad Madawaki, Director of Policy and Strategy at the NCTC-ONSA, stated that NACTEST had provided a critical framework for counter-terrorism since its introduction in 2014.

“As the threat landscape evolved, it became clear that a review was necessary to ensure that our strategy remained effective and relevant.

“To support this review, we engaged in extensive consultations with various stakeholders, including our international partners.

“We had the privilege of collaborating with renowned international partners to leverage their expertise and best practices,” he said.

According to him, these interactions enriched our understanding of emerging trends and innovative approaches to countering terrorism.