Erudite scholar, Dr Samson Oyefolu, who is also a Lecturer in the Department of Political Science, Lagos State University, drew a large applause on Monday, at the Headquarters of the Nigerian Army College of Logistics and Management (NACOLM),Ojoo, Lagos, where he delivered a lecture titled “Military Alliance and Cooperation: African Experience and Perspective”.
Held on the 13th day of October, 2025, Oyefolu was invited to the do, as a guest lecturer, to facilitate training of Senior Military Officers.
At the presentation, the erudite scholar alluded to the fact that military alliance and cooperation becomes necessary largely due to the dynamic nature of international relations over time, following the ecological state of the world and other security threats.
He highlighted the core aspects of military alliance and cooperation, which includes interoperability in the areas of communication, transportation, military and leadership raining, technology, equipments among others.
The lecture underscored and located African experience and perspective of military alliance and cooperation in the roles of regional and continental integration efforts. Examples were noted in the case of African Union’s agenda of 2063 and the African Peace and Security Architecture (APSA) which provides framework for promoting peace, security and stability in Africa. Creation of African Standby Force was a significant achievement of Military and cooperation in Africa.
This initiative he said, influenced the replication and development of peace and security system at the level of Regional Economic Communities, such as ECOWAS Standby Force, SADC Standby Force among others.
The military and alliance cooperation he offered , also found expression in the emergence of Alliance of Sahel States (AES) in 2023; a confederation of Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger. This he added, was identified as an alternative to ECOWAS following the sanction of the former.
The lecture articulated the role of regional powers such as Nigeria, South Africa and Egypt in the process of military alliance and cooperation in Africa, especially in terms of leadership, capacity building and mediation.
While appreciating the key achievements of the alliance in the creation and roles of African Standby Force including the Regional Economic Communities of ECOWAS and SADC among others, Oyefolu noted the challenges of governance, mutual distrust, coordination, limited resources, economic difficulties, inter alia as undermining the efficiency of military alliance and cooperation in Africa.
The lecture wrapped up with emphasis on the United Africa as advocated by Kwame Nkrumah and indigenous capacity building without relying on foreign power for military capabilities and development.
