Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Lieutenant General Waidi Shaibu, has reaffirmed its commitment to developing intellectually grounded and strategically minded officers capable of confronting Nigeria’s evolving security challenges.
This was highlighted at the graduation ceremony of the Leadership and Strategic Studies Course (LSSC) 4/2025, held on Friday, 11 September 2026, at the Nigerian Army Resource Centre (NARC), Abuja.
Speaking as Special Guest of Honour, the Chief of Army Staff (COAS) and Chairman, Board of Trustees of NARC, Lieutenant General Waidi Shaibu, congratulated the graduands on completing 11 months of rigorous intellectual and professional development.
He urged them to regard their graduation not merely as an additional qualification, but as a call to greater responsibility, purposeful leadership and improved professional performance.
The COAS according to a statement by the Army’s spokesperson, Col. Appolonia Anele, observed that contemporary security threats, including terrorism, insurgency, banditry, cyber threats, information warfare and transnational organised crime, require officers who can think beyond immediate tactical problems and develop innovative responses that integrate kinetic and non-kinetic approaches.
He therefore charged the graduands to resist intellectual complacency, question assumptions and continually expand their professional knowledge.
General Shaibu further noted that the recent expansion of the Nigerian Army’s force structure from eight to 12 divisions, alongside the establishment of additional formations and units, has increased the demand for intellectually prepared officers capable of providing effective leadership, sound staff work and strategic direction.
He challenged the officers to become agents of positive institutional change and translate their acquired knowledge into measurable improvements in planning, decision-making and operational effectiveness.
He added that these expectations align with his Command Philosophy of transforming the Nigerian Army into a professional, adaptable, combat-ready and resilient force.
The COAS also expressed appreciation to the President, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, His Excellency Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR, for his strategic guidance and sustained support for professional military education and human-capital development.
Earlier in his welcome remarks, the Director General, Nigerian Army Resource Centre, Major General James Gwaza Khalifa Myam, explained that LSSC is one of the Centre’s flagship programmes designed in partnership with the Postgraduate School of the Nigerian Defence Academy to provide higher-level professional and academic education for senior Direct Regular Commission officers.
He disclosed that the curriculum is built around the interconnected themes of leadership, strategy, national security and national development, with emphasis on preparing participants to navigate contemporary security and geopolitical challenges.
The successful participants he averred received a Master’s Degree in Leadership and Strategic Studies from the Nigerian Defence Academy and a Fellowship in Leadership and Strategic Studies from NARC.
The Director General also urged the graduands to justify the investment in their development by translating their knowledge into tangible, knowledge-driven outcomes in their respective formations and units.
He further charged them to think critically, challenge assumptions, demonstrate discipline and provide innovative solutions to complex operational and institutional challenges.
The ceremony marked the graduation of the fourth cohort of the course and underscored the Nigerian Army’s sustained investment in professional military education, strategic leadership and institutional capacity development.