Amid influx of terrorists, pirates, Nigerian Immigration boss speaks on efforts to secure maritime borders

The Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), Kemi Nandap, says the agency is scaling up efforts to secure Nigeria’s maritime borders amid rising threats of terrorism, piracy, and other transnational crimes.

Speaking at the opening ceremony of a Regional Workshop on Maritime Border Security in Abuja on Tuesday, Nandap stressed the critical role of inter-agency and cross-border cooperation in safeguarding the Gulf of Guinea and its surrounding nations.

The event, themed “Maritime Security in the Context of Counter-Terrorism in the Gulf of Guinea”, brought together key players from across West and Central Africa, as well as international allies, to address longstanding threats to maritime safety such as human trafficking, illicit arms flow, stowaways, and the smuggling of migrants.

The event is coming amid recent upscale in attacks by terrorists and bandits in some parts of the country. Security agencies have attributed the increased attacks on influx of criminals from outside Nigeria.

“Securing our borders, especially at sea, requires more than national action,” Nandap said. “It demands sustained collaboration, the use of advanced technologies, and a strategic mindset that places regional safety above all”, Nandap stated.

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She noted that the Nigeria Immigration Service remains a key player in ensuring that foreign terrorist fighters and other criminal elements do not exploit Nigeria’s territorial waters and porous maritime frontiers.

“Our mission goes beyond passport control. We are expanding intelligence through systems like the Advanced Passenger Information (API) and Passenger Name Record (PNR), and extending our Border Management Information System to marine routes. These tools will enhance our capacity to monitor movements, detect threats, and respond in real time,” she said.

While acknowledging the economic importance of the Gulf of Guinea, Nandap painted a sobering picture of its vulnerabilities, particularly along Nigeria’s Atlantic coast, which has become synonymous with piracy, illegal oil bunkering, and armed robbery at sea.

She also spoke on the NIS’s commitment to strategic frameworks like the African Integrated Maritime Strategy 2050 and ECOWAS’s Gulf of Guinea Strategy, which are designed to harness the region’s blue economy while safeguarding maritime security.

“This workshop reflects our collective determination to confront shared security challenges through innovation, intelligence sharing, and capacity building. Our threats are transnational, and so must be our response,” Nandap added.

In his contribution, the Minister of Interior, Dr. Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo said “We cannot afford to look the other way. Border control is national security. This government is ready to make bold decisions to protect the integrity of our borders—land or sea,” the minister stated.

The workshop drew participation from delegates across Africa and beyond, including security and migration experts from Germany, the United Kingdom, Denmark, the Philippines, Mauritius, Cameroon, Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire, Togo, Sierra Leone, and São Tomé and Príncipe.

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