To address the increasing security challenges, the Federal Government has allocated an additional N14bn towards the acquisition of various military equipment between September and October 2024.
Earlier in the year, the government had already spent N63.6bn on procuring equipment and ammunition for the military and the Office of the National Security Adviser.
Records from GovSpend, a platform monitoring government spending, revealed specific transactions. For instance, on April 16, 2024, the Ministry of Defence paid N990m to a company for ammunition procurement.
Similarly, on April 22, 2024, the ministry paid N941m to the same company for light tactical armored vehicles, heavy anti-mine armored vehicles, and more ammunition for the Armed Forces of Nigeria.
Another significant payment of N3.2bn was made on July 2, 2024, for bullet-resistant guard booths and surveillance equipment for the Armed Forces of Nigeria.
Further allocations included a sum of N33bn on July 26, 2024, for urgent operational equipment purchases and N3bn on July 27, 2024, for critical operational support.
Moreover, on July 31, 2024, N22bn was disbursed to the Office of the National Security Adviser for essential equipment procurement.
Between September and October, an additional N14bn was spent on military equipment, with notable transactions including N4bn for critical combat equipment on September 13 and N6.4bn by the Nigerian Air Force in October.
The cumulative expenditure on arms purchases for the first ten months of 2024 amounted to N77.6bn.
An examination of the annual defense budgets from 2020 to 2023 indicated a total spending of N231.27bn on arms and ammunition for security agencies and personnel.
Additionally, N115bn was used for the importation of arms and ammunition during the same period.
Explaining the substantial arms procurement budget, Gen. Christopher Musa highlighted in a 2023 session with the House of Representatives that ammunition costs are high due to foreign purchases as Nigeria lacks local military hardware production.