Northern Nigeria

by David Pfotenhauer

The Case for Private Contractors in Northern Nigeria

The unsubstantiated rumours of the private security company STTEP (Specialised Tasks, Training, Equipment and Protection International) being redeployed to Nigeria have yet to generate the furore that their initial deployment did in 2015. The earlier presence of STTEP prompted the South African government to label them as ‘mercenary’ in function and nature and therefore in contravention of existing domestic and international legal mechanisms. Other commentators took a broader view and characterised their arrival in northern Nigeria as a “logical step” (and as an act of desperation) following the poor performance of the Nigerian Defence Force (NDF) in their operations against Boko Haram.

Following the rumours of STTEP’s return, two questions need to be asked: was the deployment of a private military contractor (PMC: in this case STTEP) a dangerous strategic calculation on the part of the Jonathan administration? And secondly, what would the redeployment of a PMC in a combat orientated role mean for contingency contracting on the continent? Crucially, these questions should be examined against the failure of the training and advisory support provided to the Nigerian government by its international partners to achieve meaningful strategic success.



Fortunately, the answers to these questions can be seen in hindsight. In the first case, it is necessary to outline the broader operational and strategic priorities that prompted the previous Jonathan administration to seek private military services. These priorities influenced the decision to hire a PMC as an outcome of recurring NDF inertia at strategic, operational and tactical levels. The answer to the second question lies within......

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