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Multi-drug (MDR) and extensively drug-resistant (XDR) tuberculosis (TB) continues to be a global public health problem especially in high TB burden countries like Nigeria. Many of these cases are undetected and go on to infect high risk individuals. Clinical samples from positive rifampicin resistant Xpert®MTB/Rif assay were subjected to direct whole genome sequencing and bioinformatics analysis to identify the full antibiotics resistance and lineage profile. We report two (2) XDR TB samples also belonging to the East-Asian/Beijing family of lineage 2 Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex (MTBC) from clinical samples in Nigeria. Our findings further reveal the presence of resistance genes to first-line drugs (rifampicin, isoniazid, ethambutol and pyrazanimide), second-line injectables (capreomycin, streptomycin, kanamycin and/or amikacin) and at least one of the fluoroquinolones (ofloxacin, moxifloxacin, levofloxacin and/or ciprofloxacin) in both samples. The genomic sequence data from this study not only provide the first evidence of XDR TB in Nigeria and West Africa, but also emphasize the importance of WGS in accurately detecting MDR and XDR TB, to ensure adequate and proper management treatment regimens for affected individuals. This will greatly aid in preventing the spread of drug resistance TB in high burden countries.

This paper focuses on the international security concerns in relation to the disquiets in the tiny West African state, Guinea-Bissau since independence. The country famously known as “narco-state” faces formidable challenges with weak governance negatively impacting on intelligence services. Intelligence and security reform is a building block of democracy, but this has been habitually weakened in Guinea-Bissau during the last four decades. The state remains one of the most fragile nations in the world having had its security culture totally perturbed, occasioned by the military rule since independence from Portugal in 1974. With over nine coup d’états that have been staged with a number of state administrations toppled coupled with an avalanche of internal conflicts, and prevalence of transnational phenomena (cocaine trafficking), and other traditional state-based challenges, the African narco-state has been left with a very weak governance structure, security, and intelligence services. The study examines Guinea-Bissau’s intelligence culture drawing from secondary sources to understand how intelligence has been shaped and how intelligence has influenced the country in the context of poverty and authoritarianism. The study examines the various factors that have shaped the state’s intelligence, analyzing the transformation and reform in the state’s defense and security sector. It provides recommendations so the Bissau-Guinean intelligence community can be more effective. This study uses secondary sources and makes use of descriptive and content analyses techniques.

This paper painstakingly addresses the phenomenon of rising waves of prison or jailbreak in Nigeria. And as generally observed according to the dictates of Nigerian law, jail or prison break remains an illegal or unlawful act under which a prisoner forces his or her way out of the prison in a state. This phenomenon of jailbreaks has in one way or the other impacted negatively on the society and posed dangerous threats to national peace and security. The paper in its objectives endeavours to: highlight the series of jailbreaks that have taken place in Nigeria and the various techniques employed by the escapees; interrogate the causal factors of jailbreaks in the country; and also examine the roles of prison intelligence and dynamic security in curtailing the menace. The study makes use of the regulatory capture theory to explain the bane of the phenomena while descriptive and content-analysis techniques are adopted. With the aid of primary and secondary data, the paper is able to reveal that; corruption, ineffective Correctional Service Arms Squad and Intelligence Unit, lack of prison intelligence and dynamic security, among others have weakened the Nigerian Correctional facilities’ security and led to incessant jailbreaks in Nigeria. The paper, however, recommended; putting in place a very sensitive nature of prison information and intelligence; establishing a prison intelligence management board; adopting a multi-agency approach security strategy; and training of prison-based intelligence officers for intelligence gathering and information sharing as strategies of curtailing the rising spate of jailbreaks in Nigeria.

Among the major threats halting the wheel of developments in northern Nigeria is the rising spate of insecurity and conflicts that have now assumed various formidable dimensions in all ramifications. The waves of violence and armed conflicts have continued to take toll on the region over the last three decades, claimed over twenty-eight thousand (28,000) lives and got three million (3 million) people displaced. Despite the disheartening statistics, Peace Direct (PD), a charitable organization known for its non-violent and peace building initiatives, and having supported the civil societies in conflict zones for over a decade across the globe, has now come out optimistic that a non-violent and peaceful northern Nigeria is possible. The study examines the various instances and factors giving birth to insecurity and violence in northern Nigeria; and also the activities of Peace Direct Charity Commission (PDCC) towards ensuring truce brokerage missions, non-violent campaigns and peaceful resolutions of conflicts in the region. The study adopts a democratic peace theory to explain the need for war’s absence in peaceful settings as the paper relies on both primary and secondary sources of data with significant reliability index. The study, however, reveals the various factors aiding insecurity and violence in the region to be; a disconnect between the people and government, abject poverty, increased rate of unemployment, weak and poorly funded military establishments, interagency rivalry, low-level of intelligence gathering on the part of security agencies in Nigeria, among others. Therefore, making the region to be non-violent and peaceful; the Nigerian security agencies, social system, public institutions truce brokerage missions, and peace building efforts or initiatives must be adequately strengthened.

In the West African sub-region, the trend of trafficking in persons is widespread; and the phenomenon now attaining its peak unhindered, has actually portrayed Nigeria as a nation occupying a central position as an originating state, transit and destination for victims of trafficking. There is also evidence of internal trafficking from rural zones to cities. The menace of human trafficking in Nigerian state has taken an indescribable facet in the last two decades owing to the factors of; massive unemployment, poverty, recession in the economy, conflicts, globalization, existing weak legal system, and inadequate legislation, and political will. Trafficking in person is an organized crime and a modern form of slavery. The two methods used by traffickers to get their victims are deception and through force. Human trafficking has continued to strive in Nigeria because of shameful connivance among the Nigeria’s security agencies, Embassies, airline officials and human traffickers. The study adopts Marcus Felson and Lawrence Cohen’s Routine Activity and the Kevin Bales’ Modern Slavery theories (1979; 1999). 500 copies of questionnaire were administered to a set of purposively selected respondents with the In-Depth Interview Guide to elicit information on the subject. The study in its findings reveals that human trafficking has continued to strive in Nigeria because of connivance from the security, immigration, embassy, airline officials and traffickers while the menace has put Nigeria’s identity black in the global system. The study therefore recommended that the Nigerian government should swiftly endeavour to address the issue of massive unemployment and poverty in the state as well as create enabling environments for entrepreneurship for the citizenry; also the national laws, international conventions and protocols that have legal potencies to curb trafficking must be implemented or strengthened; and finally, fighting human trafficking in Nigeria requires more efforts to create public awareness of the crime, organize counseling, rehabilitation and re-integration program for the victims.

One of the actual threats to the nation’s and human security is the alarming rate of illicit drug trafficking (IDT). The menace of illicit drug trafficking poses heinous threats to human lives, national development and security. Most of the Nigerian borders are porous, therefore, giving room for easy influx, movement and exit of drugs. However, the failing economy, insecurity, high rate of graduate unemployment, poverty, failure of government to provide basic necessities of life, high level of corruption and get-rich-quickly syndrome among the youths in Nigeria, constitute the various banes behind the practice of illicit drug trafficking in the state. This study interrogates the obstacles and threats posed by drug trafficking to human lives, state’s development and national security; it assesses the concerted efforts of the Nigerian government aimed at combating the menace with a plan to proffer solutions on how to checkmate the disheartening phenomenon. The study concludes that, lack of adequate intelligence gathering, insecurity, bribery and corruption, poverty, civilization and porous borders stand as a cog in the wheel to appreciable efforts at arresting the menace in the country. It also submits that there is need for sound orientation/education, strong law and good governance, adequate intelligence gathering to solve the problem in addition to the imperative role of law enforcement agencies for sustenance of a drug-free society and state.