Deployment of Forest Guards Will Encourage Farmers to Return to Farms

By Ahmad Saka

The National President of the All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN), Hon. Muhammed Magaji Gettado, has said the deployment of 7,000 forest guards across the country will encourage farmers to return to their farms, particularly for dry season farming.

Gettado expressed satisfaction with the Federal Government’s efforts to protect farmers during both dry and wet farming seasons through the establishment of the Forest Guards initiative.

Speaking to journalists in Bauchi, the AFAN president said the recent graduation of over 7,000 newly recruited forest guards drawn from frontline states, with immediate deployment ordered, would significantly strengthen internal security and help reclaim Nigeria’s forests from criminal elements.

He said AFAN followed with keen interest the commitment shown by the Federal Government under the leadership of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in tackling security challenges facing the country.

“A case in point is the recent graduation of seven thousand (7,000) forest guards for immediate deployment. This programmatic approach was coordinated through the Office of the National Security Adviser, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu. Participants were drawn from frontline states under the Presidential Forest Guards Initiative launched by President Tinubu in May 2025,” Gettado said.

According to him, the association notes with delight that the initiative represents a coordinated federal and state security intervention aimed at reclaiming Nigeria’s forests from criminal elements unleashing terror and mayhem on innocent citizens.

He recalled that the forest guards were graduated on Saturday, December 27, 2025, across states including Borno, Sokoto, Yobe, Adamawa, Niger, Kwara, Zamfara and Kebbi.

Gettado noted that security remains critical to farming activities, businesses, and social and economic life, stressing that the new initiative would open access to farmlands for farmers who had abandoned their farms due to threats from bandits and other criminal groups.

“This intervention will strengthen Nigeria’s internal security architecture by denying terrorists, bandits, kidnappers and other criminal elements sanctuary in forested and hard-to-reach terrains. At the same time, the deployment of forest guards will encourage farmers to return to farms for both dry and rainy season farming,” he said.

The AFAN president called on state governments to cooperate fully with the forest guards and complement the efforts of the Federal Government in combating crime and insecurity in their states.

“We assure the Federal Government of our unflinching support and cooperation in achieving this noble objective aimed at providing relief and confidence to farmers across the country,” he added.

It would be recalled that the Federal Government trained 7,000 forest guards in seven states to deny terrorists, bandits, kidnappers and other criminal groups access to forests and remote areas used as hideouts.

According to the Federal Government, the training was deliberately rigorous, combining environmental conservation principles with advanced security competencies to produce a disciplined and mission-ready force capable of sustained forest operations.

The trainees underwent physical and mental conditioning, long-range patrol simulations, tactical fieldcraft, ambush response drills and rescue operations as part of efforts to restore state authority and protect vulnerable communities.

“The guards are first responders, community protectors, and a critical layer of Nigeria’s security architecture,” the government stated.