Nigerian armed forces, police get $1bn Qatar support

The Nigerian armed forces and the police have received $1 billion support from the Republic of Qatar.

The money was released for the purchase of scientific equipment and building of an ultra-modern hospital for officers and men of the armed forces as well as the transformation of police training schools and colleges in Nigeria.

The funds was made available through a non-governmental Organisation (NGO), Africa Global Empowerment and Development Network (AGED-Network).

The organisation, AGED-Network, which signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Rear Admiral Mackson Kadiri-led National Defence College through its Center for Strategic Research and Studies for the advancement of security sector reforms, said it also received a grant of $500 million from its partners, G20 and ASHTROM to build an ultra-modern hospital for officers and men of the armed forces.

President of the organisation, Dr Bala Majidadi Kontagora, said the group’s “major priority is rendering assistance to security agencies by equipping them with modern scientific equipment.

He spoke at the opening ceremony of the National Conference on the Roles of Nigeria’s Security Agencies in the COVID-19 Pandemic Environment held in Abuja.

He said, “We are also embarking on the transformation of the Nigerian Police training schools and colleges with mordern scientific equipment. Our relentless efforts have enabled us to secure $1billion from the government of Qatar.”

He said the state-of-the-art hospital for the personnel of the armed forces would cater for the health needs of officers and their families in Nigeria.

“This project has already received a $500 million support from AGED-Network’s partners (G20 and ASHTROM),” he added.

Commandant of the National Defence College, Rear Admiral M M Kadiri, expressed delight at the involvement of AGED-Network in the conference.

He said the joint hosting of the conference showed the passionate disposition in promoting good relations between security agencies and the wider society.