The Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC) has emphasised the need for gender-sensitive reforms within the military to prevent sexual violence and strengthen women’s participation in leadership roles, calling for adequate monitoring mechanisms for gender-related compliance in the Defence and Security sector.
CISLAC explained that this would help to prevent gender-based violence and abuse during operations.
The organisation also called for comprehensive reforms in financial management and accountability across the defence sector, noting that weak auditing systems and outdated laws remain major obstacles to transparency.
CISLAC made the call through its Executive Director and Head of Transparency International Nigeria (TI-Nigeria), Auwal Ibrahim Musa Rafsanjani, during a workshop held in Lagos.
The workshop, organised in partnership with the Transparency International Defence and Security Programme and supported by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands, focused on strengthening the investigative capacity of journalists reporting on corruption in the defence sector.
Speaking further, Rafsanjani called for stronger accountability mechanisms to tackle corruption and inefficiency in Nigeria’s defence sector.
He added that corruption, financial mismanagement and abuse of power continue to undermine the country’s ability to effectively address insecurity.
According to Rafsanjani, findings from the Government Defence Integrity Index (GDI) and other research show that systemic corruption within security institutions has worsened violent conflicts and eroded public trust.
He noted that the government’s failure to curb graft has also contributed to the proliferation of self-defence militias and the increasing militarisation of communities.
