The Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Idi Abbas, says the Nigerian Navy is expanding its logistics system to support growing joint and land-based operations as the country’s security challenges evolve.
Abbas spoke while declaring open the Nigerian Navy Logistics Seminar at the Nigerian Navy College, Kano, where he also commissioned a 120-bed male ratings’ accommodation facility for personnel under training.
He said establishing the Nigerian Navy Marines and Special Operations Command had widened the Navy’s responsibilities beyond its traditional maritime role, creating new demands on its logistics system.
“Logistics must provide the right resources, in the right condition, at the right place and at the right time to achieve the desired effect,” Abbas said.
He said the expanded operational responsibilities now require the Navy to deliberately provide for “land mobility, field sustainment, combat supplies, temporary accommodation, medical support and forward maintenance.”
The naval chief urged seminar participants to move beyond identifying familiar challenges and produce “practical and measurable recommendations” to improve resource planning, procurement, inventory management, accountability and service delivery.
He also linked logistics reform to the Navy’s fleet renewal programme, saying the acquisition of modern platforms would have limited value without the capacity to keep them operational.
“Our objective must now go beyond acquiring modern platforms to sustaining their availability and operational value throughout their service lives,” he said.
Abbas charged participants to develop a long-term logistics roadmap supporting fleet renewal, indigenous shipbuilding and future operational requirements.
He said the broader goal was to build “a modern, agile and professional naval force” capable of securing Nigeria’s maritime interests while working with other security agencies to advance national security.
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