The Impact of Foreign Defense Aid on the Fight Against Insurgency in Northern Nigeria

Terrorism is one of the major challenges states face globally. The importance of this problem creates strong incentives for policymakers to design efficient counter insurgency policies. From the global north to the global south, terrorism has become a reality of the modern world. Developing countries are more vulnerable because they lack the technical expertise to handle this imminent threat. As a result, policymakers of most Western democracies employed the idea of providing defense aid to increase their capabilities towards preventing and combating insurgencies. Although fighting insurgency by foreign defense aid continues to find resonance in the policy circles, academics are more skeptical of this policy. Since 2009, Boko Haram has remained the biggest security threat in Nigeria. The group challenges the sovereignty of the country in the course of promoting Islamic revivalism. The military began to face a new paradigm of conflict (non-conventional warfare). The country lacks the technical expertise and financial capacity to produce the necessary equipment for the military. Subsequently, the government sought aid from friendly countries like the United States and the United Kingdom. However, the lingering insurgency in northern Nigeria has prompted the need for questions to be asked. What has been the outcome of the defense aid? This research work delves into the impact of foreign defense aid on Nigeria’s war against insurgency. The question guiding this study is how effective has Nigeria’s use of foreign defense aid been in the fight against insurgency? Keywords: Insurgency, Terrorism, Foreign Defense Aid, Boko Haram.