13 Jul AFRICOM promotes intelligence-led security model for Africa

The United States Africa Command (AFRICOM) is advocating a greater emphasis on intelligence-led security operations across Africa, with Nigeria highlighted as an example of how intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) support can strengthen locally led counterterrorism efforts.

Speaking on 2 July, after the 2026 African Chiefs of Defence Conference (ACHOD) in Luanda, Angola, Africom Commander General Dagvin Anderson outlined AFRICOM’s evolving approach to security cooperation, arguing that African militaries should remain at the forefront of operations while international partners provide specialist capabilities, including intelligence, surveillance, logistics and selective operational support.

According to AFRICOM, the model moves away from large-scale foreign military deployments in favour of enabling African nations to conduct their own security operations more effectively. Nigeria was cited as a key example, with intelligence sharing and ISR support described as force multipliers in ongoing efforts to counter terrorist organisations operating in the region.

It also emphasised that cooperation extends beyond military operations to include training, technology and information sharing, enabling national security forces to improve situational awareness and operational decision-making.

Tthe strategy highlights the growing importance of intelligence-led policing and defence, where timely information and advanced surveillance capabilities play an increasingly central role in preventing attacks and disrupting terrorist networks.

AFRICOM maintains that future security partnerships should focus on supporting African-led solutions rather than direct intervention, with enhanced intelligence cooperation, technology and capacity building forming the foundation of a more sustainable regional security model. Nigeria’s experience, it argues, demonstrates how this approach can improve operational effectiveness while leaving responsibility for security firmly in the hands of national forces.