SMALL ARMS AND LIGHT WEAPONS SMUGGLING AND BOKO HARAM CHALLENGE TO NIGERIAN SECURITY: A CASE STUDY OF THE BENIN-NIGERIAN POROUS BORDER

Abstract

Porous borders continue to be the principal source and conduit for small arms and light weapons (SALWs) throughout Africa, particularly Nigeria. Presently, Nigeria’s security environment is severely endangered by the operations of the Boko Haram insurgent group, which often uses smuggled firearms and ammunition. Scholars have paid little attention to analyzing the smuggling problem in SALWs and their threat to Nigeria’s internal security amid the Boko Haram menace. This study addresses the SALWs smuggling, and Boko Haram challenges to Nigerian security by using the Benin-Nigerian Porous Border as a case study. This paper discovers that the porous Nigeria-Benin border and the lackadaisical attitude of both governments have enabled transnational crime of the Boko-Haram sect. The paper recommends adequate coordination between security services and residents to battle the scourge of cross-border proliferation of small guns and light weapons between Benin and Nigeria. This study recommends a West African regional security network structure to regulate borders and coordinate security to curb SALWs and other criminal activities.