Lieutenant General Taoreed Lagbaja, the Chief of Army Staff, COAS, has committed to promoting rigorous equipment maintenance to enhance the Nigerian Army’s, NA operational readiness.

This was contained in a statement signed by the Major General
Director Army Public Relations, Onyema Nwachukwu on Thursday.

According to the statement, the announcement was made on Thursday, during a paper presentation at the Army Headquarters conference room.

The presentation, titled “Equipment Maintenance and Operational Readiness: Strategic Options for the Nigerian Army by the Year 2035,” was delivered by Nigerian Army participants of National Defence College (NDC) Course 32.

Commending the participants for their well-researched paper, General Lagbaja stated, “The NA has a lot to gain when the research findings are implemented.”

He revealed that the Army would adopt several recommendations for maintaining its vehicles across various theaters of operations to improve effectiveness.

“As technologies continue to advance, the NA will continue to adopt and integrate evolving innovations to maintain a competitive edge and standardized operations in the theatres of operations.”

Earlier, Rear Admiral Olotu Olumuyiwa, Commandant of the National Defence College, expressed his gratitude to the COAS for his support and for attending the presentation by Colonel Eromosele Lawani, one of the participants.

Rear Admiral Olumuyiwa highlighted that the paper’s focus on enhancing equipment viability is crucial for the Army’s mandate to protect Nigeria’s territorial integrity, strategic infrastructure, people, and core interests.

He noted, “The NA needs to constantly build requisite capacity to maintain equipment, as well as leverage key local and foreign stakeholders to ensure a high rate of operational readiness.”

The event concluded with Course 32 President, Colonel Saidu Tafida, presenting a hard copy of the research paper to the COAS.