NIA boss, Ahmed
NIA boss, Ahmed Rufai emerges Africa Intelligence
Committee Chairperson
NIA boss, Ahmed Rufai emerges Africa Intelligence Committee
Chairperson
Ambassador Ahmed Rufai Abubakar, the Director-General of the
National Intelligence Agency (NIA), has been appointed as
Chairperson of the Committee of Intelligence and Security Services
of Africa (CISSA).
The Directors-General and Heads of Security and Intelligence
Agencies of 52 African countries at their meeting in Abuja
unanimously adopted Abubakar as CISSA Chairperson the 16th Ordinary
Conference of the network.
This is coming as CISSA has established a database to track all
terrorist fighters across the African continent, aimed at
monitoring their movements and proactively disrupting their
activities.
Rufai, who takes over from Mr. B. K. Likando of the Namibia
Central Intelligence Service, chairs this year’s conference with
the theme: “Illicit Financial Outflows from Africa and Their Impact
on National Security and Development.”
Speaking on the theme of the conference, the Executive Secretary
of CISSA Mr. Shimeles W. Semayat stressed that there are security
implications of Financial Outflows from Africa as well as financing
of terrorists and extremists activities.
He noted that since the activities are highly transnational, it
behooves on the African countries to cooperate, pool resources
together, share and coordinate intelligence in order to effectively
deal with the evolving security challenges confronting the
continent.
It is on the premise, he revealed that the African security
services are aiming to cut of the terrorists financing of which if
it succeeds, would have dealt with 90 percent of the security
problems.
He said: “To this end, CISSA has established a database for
terrorist fighters in order to share this information easily with
member states and monitor their movements and curb their
activities.”
He explained that the creation of CISSA was informed by the
realization that the security threats confronting Africa were
increasingly becoming transnational and borderless in nature.
Hence the need for the continent’s Intelligence and Security
Services to cooperate and coordinate their efforts through
collaboration action in order to respond effectively to the
security needs of the continent and individual member
countries.
“One of the key objectives of CISSA is to provide intelligence
support to the African Union leadership in its efforts to maintain
peace, security and stability in Africa by means of prevention,
management and resolution of conflicts and elimination of all forms
of security threats on the continent.
“In this regard, CISS functions as a ‘Silent Pillar of the AU
Peace and Security Architecture’ and provides strategic and
predictive intelligence to the AU Commission, in particular the
Peace and Security Council (PSC), for informed policy
decision-making relating to the maintenance of peace, security and
stability on the continent,” he said.
Semayat said the Conference which is holding between the 17th
and 20th of July and will be declared opened by President Muhammadu
Buhari, who will also deliver a keynote address at the event.
“During the closed session, participants at the Conference will
deliberate on major issues of security concern on the continent and
adopt appropriate strategies to deal with the various threats to
peace, security and stability in Africa,” he added.
PRNigeria gathered that the NIA Director-General, will provide
strategic leadership and guidance to the organization in carrying
out its core mandate of ensuring peace, security and stability in
Africa until next year conference
By PRNigeria