UN

Nigeria’s military is ranked the fourth in Africa and thirty-fifth in the world with respect to strength.

This is according to data from Global Firepower. According to the data, Nigeria has had constant military growth since the beginning of the Buhari administration.

According to the Global Firepower ranking, the lower the power index of a country, the higher the military capability of such a country. 0.000 is considered a perfect power index.

The country’s military strength index currently stands at 0.5745, which is a slight improvement compared to 2021 when the power index was 0.62. 

The power index is determined by several factors which are grouped under 8 indicators. They include manpower, land system, airpower, naval power, resources, logistical, financial, and geographic.

In the last 7 years, Nigeria has maintained fourth and fifth position in Africa in terms of military strength out of the 54 countries. Egypt on the other hand has maintained the first position, making it the country with the strongest military strength in the period under review. 

Other countries that rank high on the list are Algeria, Ethiopia, South Africa, Kenya, Libya, and Morocco. 

Egypt ranks 12th globally in the 2022 ranking of military strength, while South Africa, Algeria, and Ethiopia, rank 26th, 31st, and 65th  respectively.  

Nigeria’s Military Strength Power Index Under the Buhari Administration

Global Firepower data shows that in 2015, Nigeria’s power index stood at 1.526, the worst in the period under review. However, in 2016, it reduced by a great deal when 0.786 was recorded. 0.575 is the latest power index recorded for Nigeria. 

Current data also reveals that Nigeria has a total military personnel of 215,000 out of which 135,000 are active and 80,000 make up the paramilitary.

So far under the Buhari Administration, the Nigerian Air force has acquired a total of 38 aircraft, the Nigerian navy acquired close to 400 new platforms since 2015 which includes 14 houseboats, 4 helicopters, 4 capital ships, 12 manta class/inshore patrol craft, and 22 fast attack boats among others. 

The president also gave a directive to the Nigerian Navy to establish a naval base in Baga, Borno State, an area prone to criminal activities near the nation’s coast. 

The President also mobilised international support for the fight against Boko Haram from countries like the United States of America, United Kingdom, France, Germany, ECOWAS, UN, and AU, which led to the United States agreeing to sell 12 Super Tucano aircrafts to Nigeria in 2017