The National Counter Terrorism Centre (NCTC), the Office of National Security Adviser (NSA), has restated the commitment of the federal government to partner relevant organisations to counter violent extremism in correctional facilities across the country.
The NCTC National Coordinator, Maj.-Gen. Adamu Laka, stated this Monday in Abuja at a workshop organised by the centre in partnership with Canada and Global Centre on Cooperative Security (GCCS) with the theme: Countering Violent Extremism in the custodial centre (CVE-P) in Nigeria.
He said custodial centres occupy a critical space in Nigeria’s national security architecture, noting that they are designed for safe custody, reformation, and rehabilitation of inmates.
“As the National Counter Terrorism Centre, we are committed to strengthening resilience within our custodial facilities.
“We believe that through capacity building, intelligence sharing, and community engagement, we can transform these centres from potential breeding grounds of extremism into spaces of rehabilitation, reform, and reintegration,” he said.
He however, noted that global experience has shown that if not properly managed, such environments can become breeding grounds for radicalization and recruitment into violent extremist networks.
He said the partnership underscores the importance of international cooperation in tackling terrorism and violent extremism, describing it as a “challenges that transcend borders and demand collective solutions.”
” This collaboration also reflects our shared understanding that addressing violent extremism requires a comprehensive, multi-sectoral, and sustained approach.
“This underscores the urgency of equipping relevant Ministries, Departments, and Agencies with the knowledge, tools, and strategies required to detect, prevent, and respond to extremist ideologies within these facilities. Therefore, the training is apt, timely, and strategic,” he said.
He said it aligns with the Federal government’s commitment to a whole-of-government and whole-of-society approach in addressing the drivers of violent extremism, as well as complements ongoing initiatives aimed at strengthening rehabilitation and reintegration frameworks.
In her remarks, a senior fellow at GCCS, Saeida Rouass, said the centre specialises in offering technical assistance, practical guidance, and targeted training to support correctional staff in preventing and countering violent extremism.
She said over the past two decades, the center has established trusted partnerships with correctional services in Morocco, Kenya, Indonesia, and Trinidad & Tobago, “focused on addressing violent extremism in prisons and supporting the assessment, management, rehabilitation, and reintegration of individuals detained for terrorism-related offenses. “
Also speaking, Controller-General of the Nigerian Correctional Service (NCoS), Sylvester Ndidi Nwakuche, said the service has over the years adapted to a changing security landscape, including managing individuals linked to violent extremism within custodial settings.
Represented by DCC Jammal Bakare, since the introduction of our deradicalisation programme in 2016, it has taken deliberate steps to move beyond containment towards rehabilitation.
“That effort has required us to build systems, develop expertise, and work across disciplines—bringing together psychologists, counsellors, religious instructors, and welfare officers to engage offenders in a more structured and meaningful way.
“But we are under no illusions. This is difficult work. Custodial centres can either disrupt extremist thinking—or unintentionally reinforce it.
“The difference lies in how prepared we are, how coordinated our approach is, and how consistently we apply what we know works.”