Nigeria and Türkiye are exploring stronger cooperation in defence manufacturing, including joint production, technology transfer and local development of military equipment, as the Federal Government pushes to build a self-reliant defence industry.

Minister of Defence, General Christopher Musa (rtd.), disclosed this on Wednesday at the 7th Nigeria–Türkiye Defence Industry Business Forum held at the Transcorp Hilton in Abuja.

Musa said Nigeria was committed to developing a globally competitive defence industrial base capable of meeting domestic security needs while creating jobs, strengthening local supply chains and contributing to economic growth.

He said the Defence Industries Corporation of Nigeria (DICON) Act 2023 had provided the legal and institutional foundation for expanding local defence production and encouraging private-sector investment, technology transfer and partnerships with international manufacturers.

The minister said Nigeria’s defence relationship with Türkiye should gradually move beyond the traditional buyer-seller arrangement towards partnerships involving joint manufacturing, research and development, maintenance, repair and overhaul, as well as skills development.

According to him, Nigeria must develop the capacity not only to acquire advanced defence technologies but also to understand, adapt, manufacture, maintain and improve them locally.

He identified collaboration among government, the Armed Forces, research institutions, universities and private industry as essential to achieving the objective.

Musa also pointed to the changing nature of warfare, noting that modern conflicts increasingly rely on technologies such as unmanned systems, artificial intelligence, advanced communications, cyber capabilities, precision systems, surveillance and space-based assets.

The Head of the Turkish Defence Delegation, Gokman Ucar, said the forum could usher in a new phase of defence cooperation between Nigeria and Türkiye by connecting companies from both countries.

Ucar said discussions would focus on practical areas including joint production, localisation and technology transfer, while also examining Nigeria’s regulatory and investment environment for strategic partnerships.

Minister of State for Defence, Dr Bello Matawalle, said the DICON Act 2023 had strengthened the framework for local manufacturing, private-sector participation and strategic investment in Nigeria’s defence sector.

Matawalle urged stakeholders from both countries to use the forum to identify concrete opportunities for investment, joint production, technology licensing, co-development and localisation.

Earlier, the Director-General of DICON, Major-General Babatunde Alaya, said the corporation was expanding its focus from conventional defence equipment production to developing a broader industrial ecosystem driven by innovation, research, private-sector participation and indigenous manufacturing.

Alaya said Nigeria’s partnership with Türkiye offered opportunities beyond the procurement of military equipment, noting that Turkish expertise and technology could be combined with Nigeria’s market, human resources and industrial capacity.

He said the long-term objective was to strengthen Nigeria’s defence production resilience by reducing dependence on external supply chains and progressively developing domestic technological and manufacturing capabilities.