President Bola Tinubu says the federal government will give priority to the safety of Nigerians in the process of mineral exploitation in any community.

Similarly, the president said he has directed security agencies to intensify efforts to crack down on illegal miners across the country.

At a meeting with participants of the National Defense Academy Course 32 in Abuja, Tinubu said that moving forward, all effort would be geared towards the diversification of the economy.

“I recognize the need for the diversification of the economy, and we have been pushing hard on this. Your involvement will equally promote a better understanding of the issues. 

“We have challenges from scavengers and exploiters around the country. We must nip that in the bud, and you military officers understand this better than civil society. 

“We expect that through your command, we will have more resources that we need to make sure we have a stable economic environment,” the president said. 

The 111 participants in NDC Course 32 were drawn from the Nigerian Army, Navy, Air Force, Police, Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs), as well as 19 international participants from Africa, Asia, Europe, and South America. 

The college undertakes in-depth studies on all factors that affect national security and development. 

The research center in the college, known as the Center for Strategic Research and Studies, is also designated as the ECOWAS training center of Excellence for Peace Support Operations at the strategic level.

In his remarks, the commandant of the NDC, Rear Adm. Olumuyiwa Olotu, said the institution had graduated 2,871 participants since its inception. 

He said that besides participants from 30 African countries, the college had participants from Bangladesh, Brazil, France, Germany, India, Nepal, and Pakistan. 

Olotu said the college had embarked on infrastructural upgrades in order to make it compete favourably with any other defense college in the world.