Nigerian Soldiers Research Articles

A Study of Nigerian Army’s Involvement in African Union Peacekeeping Mission in Darfur, 2004–2007

Abstract This study investigated the role of the Nigerian Army in the African Union-initiated peace mission in Darfur between 2004 and 2007, in a conflict between the Government of Sudan and two rebel groups in Darfur. This qualitative research which was anchored on Relative Deprivation, Frustration and Aggression, and Role theories, adopted a historical research design. Instruments for, and methods of data collection were primarily direct interviews conducted with Nigerian soldiers. Sample was drawn from officers and men of the Nigerian Army who had participated in the peace mission. The paper finds that even though the mission was beset with numerous challenges, the activities of Nigerian soldiers helped ameliorate the dire situation and restored hope to the embattled people of Darfur. The paper concludes that the nexus between leadership failure in the African Union and inadequate support from the international community accounted for the challenges that befell the mission.

Personnel Psychology and Security

The personnel selection based on ethnoreligious factors, with the readoption of Fulani herders, bandits, and unknown shooters into the defense organization, has challenged Nigerian troops’ perceived individual employability, perceived work ability, and fit between person and vocation. Also, these have made personnel career adaptability a severe challenge for Nigerian soldiers. We examined person-job fit as a moderator in the associations of perceived individual employability, perceived work ability, and career adaptability. Two hundred and fifty-two Nigerian military personnel between eighteen and sixty years of age (M = 39; SD = .964) participated in the study. Through purposeful and convenient sampling techniques, we collected data using the Career Adapt-Abilities Scale, the Self-Perceived Individual Employability Scale, the Perceived Work Ability Scale, and the Person-Job-Fit Scale. Our findings showed that individual employability, perceived work ability, and person-job fit significantly predict military personnel’s career adaptation. Person-job fit moderated the association of perceived individual employability and military career adaptation. However, it did not influence the association between perceived work ability and military career adaptation. Our study showed that person-job fit, individual employability with work ability, and career adaptation are prerequisites for enlistment, deployment for combat, and well-being after combat experiences. Practical implications are that the insecurity challenges in Nigeria would have been mitigated if defense organizations had selected enlisted personnel for military work and deployment based on work ability, employability, and person-job fit so that they could quickly adapt to their careers and fight these insecurity challenges. Also, our study suggests that educational qualifications are not essential for military enlistment and deployment. We highlighted our study’s limitations and suggested further work on the topic.

Liberation of Women in Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s Purple Hibiscus and Half of a Yellow Sun

This study focuses on the liberation of Afro-American women through women empowerment. It examines the basic rights of women, gender issues and domestic violence . it also examines the oppression towards women. Narrative technique is used to describe the status of women in a patriarchal society. Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s novel “Purple Hibiscus” describes the struggle for liberation from oppression. The title of the novel “Purple Hibiscus” may refer to a particular type of flower but it develops the hope for liberation in the major character Kambili. Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s novel “Half Of a Yellow Sun” describes the struggle for liberation from sexuality and to liberate Biafran from the Nigerian soldiers.

Impact of Life Event Stress among Military Personnel Fighting Boko-Haram Insurgency in North Eastern Nigeria: Any Relationship with Psychological Skills?

Psychological Skills Techniques (PST) can minimize the impact of traumatic life event stress but the underlying mechanism of this occurrence has not been fully explored. This study aimed to elucidate the relationship between psychological skills techniques (Social supports, avoidance of destructive-thought, positive self-talk, emotional strength, relaxation skill) and the impact of traumatic life events experienced by Nigerian soldiers deployed to combat Boko-Haram insurgency in North Eastern Nigeria. We used Impact of Event Scale-Revised (IES-R) and Psychological Skills questionnaire (ß=89) to collect data from 146 purposively drawn soldiers from operation “Lafiya Doye”. Our findings show that of the 146 respondents 72.0% experienced recurrent recollections of dreams; 65.0% had physiological reactivity trauma cues, 82.0% had avoidance of trauma related actions, while 62.0% of participants experienced diminished interest in important activities. In addition, the major source of stress for the soldiers was physical violence (78%). In the regression model, it was observed that an increase in the psychological skills will statistically decrease the impact of life event stress experienced by the respondents.  Further, result from ANOVA shows that the composite effect of the predictor variables on the criterion variable was statistically significant (F (5,140) =248.369, p<0.05). In terms of magnitude, social support (ß=0.099, t=2.460, p<0.05) was most potent in predicting the impact of life event stress among the solders. We concluded that Psychological Skills Training (PST) can be effectively utilized to reduce the impact of exposure to traumatic life event stress on soldiers deployed to fight Boko-Haram insurgency in North Eastern Nigeria.

Combat Exposure and Unit Cohesion as Predictors of Depressive Symptoms Among Nigerian Soldiers

The Bokoharam terrorist organisation has been terrorizing North Eastern Nigeria for decades. The Nigerian Army has been saddled with the responsibility of re-establishing peace in that area through its counterterrorism and counterinsurgency operations. Some of the soldiers who were injured at course of this operation were found to have some challenges with their wellbeing. This study was carried out among Nigerian Soldiers wounded in action and hospitalized from the fight against Insurgency in the North-eastern part of Nigeria. Purposive sampling technique was employed to select 225 participants under hospital admission in 44 Nigerian Army Reference Hospital Kaduna with combat experience. Data were collected using standardized questionnaires. Hierarchical multiple regression analysis was used to test the hypotheses in relation to Combat Exposure and Unit Cohesion as predictors of Depressive Symptoms. Findings of the study revealed that Combat Exposure significantly predicted Depressive symptoms among Nigerian Soldiers wounded in action (β = .583, P <.01). Result further revealed that Unit Cohesion was a significant predictor of Depressive Symptoms among the soldiers wounded in action (β = -.177, P <.01). Finally, the result revealed that combined Combat Exposure and Unit Cohesion significantly predicted Depressive Symptoms among Nigerian soldiers wounded in action (R = .647a, R2 = .418, Adj. R2 = .411; P <. 01). The study recommended that the military authorities should effectively engage the services of mental health professionals such as the Psychologists to help in assessment and treating soldiers with combat trauma. Also, mood disorder alongside other factors such as life experience should be assessed as applied to the patients especially soldier patients being referred from combat arears irrespective of the nature of the health challenges as this study has shown that there is mental aspect of physical injury. Most of the soldiers are traumatized, overly depressed, feel guilty and have bad mood, poor appetites, insomnia, lack of motivation, rage, and abuse of drugs and alcohol.

Unlocking the Psychology of Work and Insecurity: How Tacit Knowledge Sharing, Diversity Climate, and Thriving at Work Influence Perceived Work Ability of Military Personnel

Because of Nigeria’s growing security problems, it is unclear how well the military can do its job. The inability of Nigerian military personnel to thrive at work must have resulted from the defense organization’s hoarding of tacit knowledge, uniform climate, and low thriving at work. The present study looked at the roles of thriving at work in the associations of tacit knowledge sharing, diversity climate, and perceived work ability. 252 Nigerian combatant army personnel, conveniently and purposefully sampled from 6 battalions, were involved in the study. The study adopted a cross-sectional design. Four instruments, the Perceived Work Ability Scale, the Diversity Climate Scale, the Tacit Knowledge Sharing Scale, and the Thriving at Work Scale, were used for data collection. The Hayes regression-based process used to test the hypothesis showed that tacit knowledge sharing, a diversity climate, and thriving at work were all linked to perceived work ability. However, thriving at work did not moderate the association between tacit knowledge sharing, diversity climate, and perceived work ability. The study findings implied that tacit knowledge sharing, diversity climate, and thriving at work are essential ingredients influencing workability’s physical, mental, and interpersonal demands that cannot be neglected. However, they have been ignored and have affected the workability of Nigerian soldiers. We tried to address this policy issue for the safety of soldiers, defense organizations, and Nigerian citizens. Other implications, study limitations, and suggestions for further studies were made.

The Nigerian Army’s Communication and Management of Combat-Related Deaths in the War against Boko Haram

ABSTRACT Thousands of Nigerian soldiers have lost their lives in the military operations against Boko Haram over the past decade. This article examines the way these deaths were communicated to the widows of the deceased soldiers. Data for this paper was gathered from in-depth interviews with military personnel, widows, and secondary sources. The findings showed non-adherence to due process and professionalism in the death communication process. Bureaucratic bottlenecks and combat realities also affected the casualty notification procedure. These show the inadequacy of the current military communication process concerning the sensitivities of wartime deaths. Accordingly, this article suggests ways of improving the communication of combat deaths in ways that reflect their heroic essence.

Portraits of the Nigerian Soldier in Isidore Okpewho’s The Last Duty and Festus Iyayi’s Heroes

An essential feature of Nigerian literatures is their capacity to exploit history and social experience to bring to light the human condition in society without compromising literary aesthetics. Thus, Nigerian novels often appear to be more educative than entertaining by their ability to illuminate social realities far more effectively than historical or sociological texts. This is evident in the representations of soldiers in Nigerian novels which are highly influenced by historical and social circumstances. This paper carries out a comparative and descriptive analysis of portrayals of Nigerian soldiers in Isidore Okpewho’s The Last Duty and Festus Iyayi’s Heroes from a new historical perspective. Most studies on the military in Nigerian novels often focus on their actions in war situations and their disruptive and undemocratic activities in politics. However, these studies frequently explore the military as a group with little attention to the texts as expositions on character types in the Nigerian military. This study therefore contributes to criticism on the nexus between literary representation, history, and society. It further highlights historical and social contexts of military explorations in Nigerian novels and their impacts on the perception of the Nigerian soldier in society. These are aimed at showing that depictions of the military in Nigerian novels go beyond their capacities for disruptions and destructions in society; they represent artistic probing of the nature and character of persons in the Nigerian military.

The Evolution of US-Biafra/Nigeria Policy during the Nigerian Civil War, 1967-1970

The Nigerian Civil War was a conflict fought between the Nigerian soldiers and Biafran forces lasting from 1967 to 1970. In its course, the US government intervened. The US also rendered relief or humanitarian support to the victims of the conflict, especially those within the Biafran environ or enclave. While this appeared to the US government as the proper step to take toward ensuring global peace and promoting human security, the Federal Military Government (FMG) was against their activities. Available studies have detailed the roles played by the US in the conflict, but little is known about the reactions of the parties to this intervention. Combining materials from archives in the US and Canada with data gathered from recently conducted fieldwork in Nigeria, this paper explores how the US arms embargo on Nigeria and Biafra, and the US government’s moves against Nigeria's counterproductive blockade on Biafra negatively shaped the relations between Nigeria and US throughout the civil war. More than any other foreign powers that intervened in the conflict, the US policy, due to its flexibility, generated constant doubts among the Nigerians and Biafrans about the actual position or stance of the great power.

Roles of Fear of Happiness and Fragility of Happiness in Nigerian Military Personnel Workload

In the light of conflicts and Boko Haram insurgency facing Nigeria as a county and the involvement of the military in the fight against terrorists, the study of workload and happiness need to be researched more to gain greater acceptance and become one of the global indices on which nations’ military are measured and ranked. Our study anchors on multiple resource and information processing theory to assess the roles of fear and fragility of happiness in workload among Nigerian military personnel. Two hundred and twenty (220) Nigerian soldiers, drawn from Nigerian Army and Nigerian Air Force participated in this study. Three instruments , namely, Workload Scale, Fear of Happiness Scale and Fragility of Happiness Scale, were used to collect data from the participants. Results of hierarchical multiple regression analysis indicated that fear of happiness was not significantly associated with work load. Fragility of happiness positively predicted work load, indicating that military personnel who had greater fragility of happiness reported greater workload. It was concluded that workplace interventions and programs to curtail fragility of happiness would be helpful in reducing the perceptions of excess workload among Nigerian military personnel.

Nigerian Forces Comforts Fund, 1940–1947: “The Responsibility of the Nigerian Government to Provide Funds for the Welfare of Its Soldiers”

AbstractThis study seeks to make an original contribution to the historiography of Africa and the Second World War. It examines the efforts of the Nigerian government and the British Army towards the welfare and comforts of Nigerian soldiers during their overseas services from 1940 to 1947. Their deployments in East Africa, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia had brought the issue of their morale maintenance, namely comforts and welfare, to the fore. Extant Nigerian studies of the Second World War have been concerned with Nigerian contributions to Allied victory in terms of diverse economic exertions and those guided by charity towards Europeans affected by the German blitzkrieg, particularly in Britain. Consequently, this paper explains the genesis, objectives, and policy directions of the Nigerian Forces Comforts Fund and its impact on Nigerian servicemen's comforts and welfare. The study posits the argument that constant disagreements and indeed struggles for supremacy between the military and the civil power adversely affected troops’ comforts and welfare. Delayed postwar repatriation of the idle and bored troops to West Africa, in breach of openly proclaimed wartime promises, bred anxiety and made them prone to mutiny. The end of demobilisation in 1947 left many disgruntled ex-servicemen applying for reenlistment.

“Victims of empire: WWI ex-servicemen and the colonial economy of wartime sacrifices in postwar British Nigeria”

ABSTRACTThe First World War (1914–18) saw the recruitment of over 20,000 Nigerian soldiers to defend the British African empire. When the war ended, the chaotic demobilization process transformed the surviving soldiers into ex-servicemen. This article examines the problems that faced the ex-servicemen in the postwar economy of British Nigeria by focusing on the categories of demobilization and resettlement, employment, finances, war wages, gratuities and pensions, and health care. It emphasizes that the neglect of the men by the colonial government in those categories meant that the men had sacrificed for the British empire far more than the empire ever remitted. The article uses the situation of the men to problematize the political economy of a compartmentalized colonial state that enforced a duality of status – citizens vs colonial subjects – for Europeans and Africans. Based on data collected from the Nigerian and British national archives, the study reveals how Nigerian WWI ex-servicemen fell victim to the logic of British colonialism which, like all others, prioritized profit above all else. Consequently, after having served the colonial state, the men became undermined within their respective African communities without a simultaneous elevation of their status within the colonial state.

Nigerian−Biafra War: Re-interrogating Indiscipline and Sabotage among the Biafran Soldiers

The Nigeria−Biafran war was an interstate military confrontation engaged in by the forces of Nigeria and Biafra between 1967−1970 as the former tried to maintain the cooperate existence of the country subsequent upon the latter expressing determinationto break away from the national sovereignty of the federal republic of Nigeria. On the one hand, the Biafrans cited discrimination and political marginalization as the bane of the conflict. While on the other hand, it was the inability or rather the unwillingness of the Nigerian Head of State, General Yakubu Gowon to rectify the resolution of 'Aburi Accord' that precipitated the outbreak of the conflict. Consequently, the war that was perceived to be a police-match by the Nigerian troops had ended up in three years of bloodshed and destructions. Although, commentators and historians alike have done a lot of classical studies on the causes and the aftermath of the civil war, which no doubt have provided a framework for understanding and analyzing conflict in Nigeria, however little have been done to unpack the factors necessary for the Biafran troops unprecedented resilience, credence and military capability that repelled attacks from the Nigerian troops who had more firepower, external support and an organized trained army. It is against this backdrop therefore, that this paper argues that Nigerian soldiers gained prominence immediately indiscipline and sabotage began to intrude among the Biafran soldiers. Our objectives are to critically examine how internal squabbles and perfunctory attitude among the Biafran soldiers have combined to weaken their military capability and enthusiasm to win the war. Data were collected from secondary sources such as textbooks, journal articles and archival materials, while content analysis was applied in analyzing data collected for this study. The paper concludes that the 'cancer indiscipline', betrayal and sabotage have caused the Biafrans' dreams of actualizing sovereignty and recognition within the international community to be abruptly terminated.

Role Reversal Protest in Nigeria: Soldiers Still the Boss? A Behaviouralist Inquiry into the Incessant Soldiers-Police Violent Conflicts in Lagos

Today's world is used to all sorts of inter-group violent conflicts, but definitely not the type in the post military Nigeria where soldiers and policemen fatally combat each other; soldiers claiming superiority over policemen who, in turn, want to seize every opportunity to act that in a democracy, they, no longer the soldiers, are the boss. This is a “role reversal protest” triggered by, first, the bossy and ‘save our souls’ Nigerian soldiers who had controlled political power until 1999; second, the inability of the post military government to make adequate provision for the management of soldiers, thereby exposing them to regular contacts with civilians. The third factor is the high handedness of some Nigerian policemen in the process of enforcing the law. In an exploration of the situation, this paper asserts that such role reversal protest is inevitable in most post military rule societies, but is pronounced in Nigeria owing to the given reasons. The paper canvases appropriate policies and practices to manage the protest in order to prevent degeneration to institutional rivalry between the military and the police: a development that can crush Nigeria’s avant grade democracy. Some policies are suggested based on common practices around the world. Also, the role of the civil society is emphasized.Key words: Role Reversal Protest, Post military Soldiers, Inter Group Conflicts, Partisan Ruling/Dominant Class, Military Privileges

Context and Intention in the Nigerian Army Parade Interaction

This study investigates the role of context in the effective production and interpretation of intentions of addressors in Army’s parade interaction. Armed-Forces Remembrance Day parade of 2009, and Inter-Brigade parade competition of 2 Division Nigerian Army of 2010 constitute the data for the study. The study which is based on insight from Harnish and Bach’s (1979) Mutual Contextual beliefs and Akin Odebunmi’s (2006) model of Contextual Beliefs reveals two main contextual features; they are Shared Knowledge of Signals, manifesting instrument-based sound, human based sound and body language indicating action; and Shared Knowledge of Professional Heroism, instantiating instrument based sound and reverent (narrated and verbalized). The paper concludes that these contextual features constitute various beliefs acted upon by soldiers for the production and effective interpretation of verbal exchange of parade talks among Nigerian soldiers, the sharing of which are capable of facilitating access to army parade interactions in Nigeria.

Perception and practice of contraception among male soldiers in Sobi barracks, Ilorin, Nigeria.

There is a popular belief among the general population that Nigerian soldiers tend to have large families but this has not been substantiated with evidence-based research. The Nigerian military health authority implements female-targetted contraception strategies, with less focus on their husbands; who are the dominant fertility determinants. To determine the perception and practice of contraception among male soldiers of Sobi Cantonment, Ilorin, Nigeria, with a view to instituting male-targeted contraceptive/family planning strategies. A cross-sectional survey of 334 male soldiers using multistage sampling technique and pre-tested interviewer administered questionnaires. The respondents' approval of contraception (73.6%) and willingness to discuss it with their spouses/partners (71.6%) were high. Fear of wives/partner's sexual promiscuity (55.7%), cultural and religious beliefs (43.2%), fear of the side effects of contraceptives (29.5%) and the desire for more children (21.6%) were reported reasons for the non-approval of contraception. The prevalence of contraceptive use among the respondents was low (12.3%). There was a significant relationship between the respondents' educational level and contraceptive use (p< 0.05). The study revealed a high approval and willingness to discuss contraception with their spouses/partners but low contraceptive use.

Prevalence of cigarette smoking and knowledge of its health implications among Nigerian soldiers

Several studies have reported a negative relationship between smoking and military performance. This study was conducted to determine the prevalence of cigarette smoking and knowledge of its health implications among Nigerian Army personnel. A descriptive cross-sectional survey of 853 soldiers using a self-administered pre-tested semi-structured questionnaire. One hundred and seventy three respondents (20.3%) out of 853 respondents smoked. About three-quarter of them started smoking in the army. Derivation of pleasure and relaxation (24.9%), allaying anxiety (21.4%) and peer influence (34.1%) were the most frequent reasons for smoking. Skin disorder (75.9%), lung cancer (68.6%), addiction (65.2%) and dental problems (57.5%) were the most commonly reported effects of smoking. Only half (50.3%) of the total respondents believed that these effects of smoking could limit military fitness and performance. Forty five (26.1%) of the smokers had attempted to quit smoking. Majority (92.7%) of all the respondents have never had anti-smoking sensitization while in the army. The prevalence of smoking among the respondents was high. In spite of their knowledge its health hazards, the respondents could not relate this to military fitness and combat effectiveness. Also, their knowledge of the adverse effects did not translate to their smoking behaviour. There is need for continuous anti-smoking programmes to be established by the medical authority in the Nigerian Army to sensitize personnel on the dangers of cigarette smoking.

The Impact of UN Sanctions and Their Panels of Experts

Sanctions applied against Sierra Leone and Liberia by the UN security council are phased and have fared differently. UN sanctions were first imposed on Sierra Leone in 1997 and on Liberia in 1992 and were mostly symbolic in nature. This changed in 2000 through proactive monitoring by expert panels - individuals hired by the UN as consultants for a limited time to provide advice and counsel to the appropriate sanctions committee. Experts dedicated to the Sierra Leone and Liberian sanctions regimes played an important role in improving the implementation of the sanctions, and, in the case of the panel for Sierra Leone, provoked a new sanctions regime against Liberia. Indeed, the Liberia sanctions regime represented the first time the council applied sanctions against a state for interference and support of rebels in another. Arguably, had it not been for the compelling information provided by the Sierra Leonean panel of experts, sanctions against Liberia for interference in Sierra Leone would not have been changed as dramatically as they were - from an arms embargo only to a series of targeted measures aimed at disrupting the funding and travel of the president of Liberia and his supporters.This article outlines the events that led to the application of sanctions by the security council, assesses the contribution of panel experts to the stabilization of the conflicts, and outlines the reasons for their diminished utility over the life of the sanctions regimes. The article also highlights that sanctions regimes have different phases and that their impact can vary over time. This is influenced by politics but also by the priorities and professionalism of the individuals appointed to UN expert groups and the support provided by the relevant UN peacekeeping operation.SIERRA LEONEIn 1996, under heavy domestic and international pressure, democratic elections took place for the first time since 1967 in Sierra Leone, leading to the election of a former UN official and leader ofthe Sierra Leone People's Party, Ahmed Tejan Kabbah. On 30 November 1996, Kabbah signed the Abidjan peace agreement with the Revolutionary United Front (RUF), which had been attempting to overthrow successive governments since March 1991. The Sierra Leone army was increasingly resentful of the power it had lost, however. Led by Major Johnny Paul Koroma, who was awaiting trial for a coup attempt in 1996, military members - many from the Republic of Sierra Leone military forces - loyal to him and backed by members of the RUF, joined forces. On 25 May 1997 a coup attempt was successful, placing Koroma and his new government, the Armed Forces Revolutionary Council (AFRC), at the helm. The economic community of west African states' (ECOWAS) military arm - ECOMOG (mainly Nigerian soldiers) - had been on the ground since the early 1990s trying to keep the peace, but, in essence, had been fighting for the now-exiled Kabbah government. It was from this point that international and regional sanctions played a role in the conflict.1THE ROLE OF SANCTIONS IN THE 1997 COUP AND AFTERMATHIn response to the May 1997 coup, ECOWAS imposed a general and total arms embargo against Sierra Leone, as well as a prohibition on the supply of petroleum products and a travel ban on members of the military junta.2 ECOWAS appealed to the security council throughout June, July, and August of 1997 to apply sanctions as well.3 The council agreed and adopted its first resolution on the situation, 1132, in October 1997. Because of the continuing violence and growing humanitarian crisis, the council declared that the situation constituted a threat to international peace and security in the region and invoked chapter VII. The initial objectives ofthe council were for the military junta to relinquish power and restore democracy to Sierra Leone. To this end, targeted travel and petroleum sanctions were imposed, along with an arms embargo. The targeted travel sanctions applied to members of the military junta and adult members of their family, unless the travel was for verified humanitarian reasons. …

Prevalence of cigarette smoking and the knowledge of its health implications among Nigerian soldiers

Several studies have reported a negative relationship between smoking and military performance. This study was conducted to determine the prevalence of cigarette smoking and knowledge of its health implications among Nigerian Army personnel. A descriptive cross-sectional survey of 853 soldiers using a self-administered pre-tested semi-structured questionnaire. One hundred and seventy three respondents (20.3%) out of 853 respondents smoked. About three-quarter of them started smoking in the army. Derivation of pleasure and relaxation (24.9%), allaying anxiety (21.4%) and peer influence (34.1%) were the most frequent reasons for smoking. Skin disorder (75.9%), lung cancer (68.6%), addiction (65.2%) and dental problems (57.5%) were the most commonly reported effects of smoking. Only half (50.3%) of the total respondents believed that these effects of smoking could limit military fitness and performance. Forty five (26.1%) of the smokers had attempted to quit smoking. Majority (92.7%) of all the respondents have never had anti-smoking sensitization while in the army. The prevalence of smoking among the respondents was high. In spite of their knowledge its health hazards, the respondents could not relate this to military fitness and combat effectiveness. Also, their knowledge of the adverse effects did not translate to their smoking behaviour. There is need for continuous anti-smoking programmes to be established by the medical authority in the Nigerian Army to sensitize personnel on the dangers of cigarette smoking.

Condom use and other HIV risk issues among Nigerian soldiers: challenges for identifying peer educators

Most Nigerian soldiers acknowledge the usefulness of condoms in HIV prevention, but few use them in sexual relationships. Identification of soldiers low in HIV-risk behaviours, particularly regular condom use, to function as peer educators appears desirable. We therefore sought to identify HIV-risk issues among a group of Nigerian soldiers. Male soldiers were more likely to be older, married and living alone than their female counterparts. Female soldiers had had better education than the males but, in spite of that, alcohol use and sexual relationships in the context of alcohol were widespread with no difference between the genders. However, alcohol abuse as detected in 22–27% of the soldiers was more likely to be a male problem. Having more than one sex partner did not distinguish the male soldiers from the females. Consistent condom use was uncommon, found in only 16–20%, with no difference between genders. Married persons (more likely to be males) were more guilty of no or inconsistent condom use. Although this study has failed to recognise who might be potential peer educators based on their non-risky behaviours, it has highlighted some important inadequacies in the Army health education campaign programme with respect to HIV/AIDS issues. Large-scale interventions, including more extensive condom promotion, training large numbers of peer educators, promoting ingenious ways of female self-protection from the highly dominant males and encouraging further research have been advocated.