Nigeria is strengthening its border management architecture through digital technology, biometric identity systems, intelligence sharing and stronger collaboration with border communities.

The Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), Kemi Nandap, made this known at the African Borderlands Research Network (ABORNE) 2026 conference on Monday in Lagos.

She said the transformation was necessary as changing migration patterns, regional integration, cross-border economic activities and emerging security threats continue to reshape Africa’s borderlands.

The conference, with theme: “The Connected Borderlands: Socio-Cultural Integration and the Centrality of Policy, Research, and Security,” brought together scholars, policymakers, practitioners and development partners.

The stakeholders examined the changing nature of border management across Africa.

According to Nandap, borders should no longer be viewed merely as geographical lines separating sovereign states, but as dynamic spaces where families, communities and cultures interact and where legitimate trade and movement take place.

She said the challenge for governments was to keep these spaces secure while facilitating lawful mobility, strengthening regional cooperation and preserving the socio-cultural and economic relationships that sustain border communities.

She noted that the nature of border security had also evolved, with threats such as human trafficking, migrant smuggling, identity fraud, organised crime, terrorism and cyber-enabled crimes increasingly operating across national boundaries.

The NIS boss said that the service was therefore combining the experience and professional judgment of its officers with technology, intelligence and stronger institutional cooperation to respond to emerging threats.

She outlined Nigeria’s progression in modern border management, recalling that the country became the first African nation to introduce the electronic passport in 2007.

She said Nigeria had subsequently introduced an enhanced e-Passport with stronger security and biometric features, while automating passport applications, payment systems, processing and identity verification.

According to her, the centralisation of passport personalisation has also improved the integrity and efficiency of passport production.

She further said Nigeria’s participation in the International Civil Aviation Organization’s Public Key Directory (ICAO PKD) was strengthening international confidence in the authentication of Nigerian electronic passports.

She noted that contactless biometric passport services were making passport processes more accessible to Nigerians living abroad while maintaining required security standards.

The comptroller-general also highlighted the deployment of automated border control systems, including e-gates, at Nigeria’s international airports.

He said the systems were transforming passenger processing by combining biometric identity verification with faster, more efficient and secure border procedures.

These measures, she said, are being complemented by investments in surveillance systems, command and control capabilities, communications infrastructure, and integrated border and data platforms covering Nigeria’s air, land and maritime borders.

She stressed, however, that the investments were not about technology for its own sake.

The NIS boss also emphasised the continued importance of the human element in border management, saying technology could not replace professionalism, experience, judgment and integrity.

She called for greater involvement of border communities, describing them as strategic partners whose local knowledge could contribute significantly to effective border management.

The Chairman of ABORNE, Prof. Paul Nugent said emerging health threats such as Ebola, COVID-19 and regional insurgencies routinely placed borders at the center of political and security interventions.

He said that these often lead to prolonged closures.

Nugent said that bridging academia and policy, ABORNE aimed to move beyond isolated academic debate by actively engaging border enforcement agencies, policymakers, and field practitioners.

He said that in reframing African borderlands, rather than viewing borders purely through the lens of instability or poor reputation, ABORNE scholars emphasise borderlands as vibrant hubs of trade, urban innovation, and cultural creativity.

Prof. Anthony Asiwaju, a former Director of the Centre for African Regional Integration and Border Studies, commended the ABORNE conference.

Goodluck Jonathan Advises Leaders to Invest in Youths, Industry

Former President of Nigeria, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan, has called on leaders in Nigeria and across Africa to invest in the youth population as well as industrial capacity with a view to transforming resources into value.

Jonathan gave the advice while delivering a lecture to the graduating Course -34 participants of the National Defence College (NDC) on Monday in Abuja.

The lecture has the topic “Harnessing Industrial Capacity for Inclusive Growth and Regional Stability in Africa”.

Jonathan noted that building enduring economic prosperity and geopolitical influence depended not only on population size, but on the capacity of nations to industrialise.

According to him, this is the strongest driver of productivity, growth and innovation.

He said that long term prosperity and stability were attained not only by the abundance of natural resources, but by the capacity to transform those resources into competitive industries, productive employment, and sustained economic growth.

”Africa accounted for nearly 19 per cent of the world’s population, possessed abundant natural resources and boasts of the world’s youngest labor force,  but has somehow managed to remain the least industrialised region.

“Rather than transforming the vast natural wealth into finished products, much of the continent continues to export raw materials while importing finished goods.

“This reduces the domestic value addition, limits the technological advancements and destroys industrial competitiveness within the continent while ensuring that no new jobs are created for the youths,” he said.

According to the former president, the industrial deficit is not merely an economic concern, but also an increasing strategic security concern.

“With more than 60 per cent of the African population under 25, the continent receives millions of youth into the labour market, and low industrialisation means it can’t keep up with the demographic expansion.

“This resulting unemployment and economic exclusion creates a fertile ground for violent extremism, organised crime, piracy, irregular migration, communal conflicts and unconstitutional changes in government.”

He however noted that in spite of the challenges, Nigeria in particular and Africa at large stood at a defining moment in its development journey.

He said studies projected Nigeria to be the third most populous nation by 2050, adding that such manpower if equipped with the right skills and vibrant industrial base support could become an advantage rather than a developmental challenge.

Jonathan also commended the policy foundations for industrailsation already making ground, identifying the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), which if continuously implemented effectively, could increase Africa’s exports remarkably by 2035.

He further lauded the efforts of the government towards diversifying the economy from being dependent on crude oil and minerals to pursuing agro- processing, manufacturing and regional value chains.

“Though manufacturing remains a minor and modest share of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), recent policy reforms, private sector investments and gradual implementation of AfCFCTA have created new industrial expansion opportunities in Nigeria,” he said.

He urged the leadership not to only view industrailsation as an economic policy option, but as a strategic imperative for strengthening national resilience, expanding economic opportunities and securing Nigeria’s future and that of Africa at large.

He advised leaders to diversify the economy into several sectors like agriculture and agro -processing, textile and apparel, as well as to invest in digital and technology -driven industry.

“Countries with diversified industrial bases are generally better equipped to respond to economic disruptions, public health emergencies, natural disasters and geopolitical crises without excessive dependence on external support,” he added.

He cautioned against over-dependence on foreign support for imported food, medicines, fuels, industrial inputs and critical technologies, as such exposed Nigeria to supply disruptions, price volatility and external pressure.

Addressing the security leaders, he said industrial capability was equally an important dimension of regional and national defence, with modern security increasingly depending on a nation’s capability to produce its own weapons and systems.

“Strengthening defence related industries not only enhances operational readiness but also encourages technical innovation, skills development and provides very important greater strategic autonomy,” he said.

Jonathan advised that to overcome financial constraints, governments should establish dedicated industrial funds to provide long-term, single digit finances for internal manufacturers to utilise instead of relying on commercial banks for loans with relatively high interest.

Highlighting the importance of human resources, he urged the government to invest aggressively in human capital and technology by modernising technical and vocational education, expanding Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) education.

He cited a situation in Rwanda where the private school system was crippled due to the heavy investment in government schools, raising its quality to surpass the one provided by private schools for little to no cost.

Jonathan added that most importantly, the government should strengthen transparency and accountability in industrial policy implementation.

The National Pension Commission (PenCom) said cumulative Retirement Savings Account (RSA) registrations under the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS) rose by 143,248 in the first quarter of 2026 (Q1’26).

PenCom disclosed this in its Q1 2026 report, stating that cumulative RSA registrations increased from 11,040,227 at the end of Q4 2025 to 11,183,475 by the end of Q1 2026.

The commission said the increase followed the opening of 143,248 new accounts during the quarter, higher than the 114,864 accounts opened in Q4 2025.

 It attributed the growth to improved digital onboarding and sustained public sensitisation.

According to the report, active pension membership now represents about 12.1 per cent of Nigeria’s estimated 92 million labour force, indicating significant room for further expansion, particularly in the informal sector.

 “Cumulative RSA registrations rose from 11,040,227 at the end of Q4 2025 to 11,183,475 at the end of Q1 2026, on the back of 143,248 new accounts opened during the quarter.

 “The quarterly cadence is materially stronger than the 114,864 opened in Q4, and reflects both improved digital onboarding and sustained public sensitisation,” PenCom said.

 The commission said the five leading Pension Fund Administrators (PFAs) accounted for 54.41 per cent of new RSA registrations during the quarter, down from 62.11 per cent in Q4 2025.

 Stanbic IBTC Pension Managers led with 25,024 new registrations, representing 17.47 per cent of the total.

 It was followed by AccessARM with 10.63 per cent, FCMB Pensions with 10.15 per cent, TangerineAPT with 9.65 per cent and Trustfund with 6.73 per cent.

 PenCom said the figures showed intensifying competition among mid-tier PFAs, noting that TangerineAPT’s emergence among the top five indicated that the market remained competitive.

On gender distribution, the commission said female registrations accounted for 44.08 per cent of new contributors in Q1, while males accounted for 55.92 per cent.

It said the figures reflected a continued narrowing of the gender gap in pension enrolment, driven by increasing female participation in the workforce and sustained sensitisation efforts aimed at promoting wider inclusion.

 The report further revealed that Nigerians below the age of 40 accounted for 75.31 per cent of new RSA registrations during the quarter.

PenCom described the youthful contributor base as a major long-term strength of the pension system, noting that the contributors had retirement horizons extending beyond 2055.

 It said investment policies should take the youthful profile of contributors into account, noting that long investment horizons provided room for greater risk-bearing capacity.

 The commission noted that pension reform would only succeed when it reached more Nigerians in both the formal and informal sectors.

 It emphasised the need to deepen coverage and bring more workers, particularly those in the informal economy, into the pension system.(NAN)