Usage of Drones or Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) for Effective Aerial Surveillance, Mapping System and Intelligence Gathering in Combating Insecurity in Nigeria
Publication Date: 12/05/2020
Author(s): Dr. Temitope Francis Abiodun.
Volume/Issue: Volume 3 , Issue 2 (2020)
Abstract:
One the major problems threatening the Nigerian state at present is the rising spate of insecurity which has now assumed a formidable dimension. The security problem which has posed dangerous threats to national security and statehood therefore is believed to have now necessitated yearnings for the use of drones for effective aerial surveillance, effective, intelligence gathering and monitoring security activities. The daily thirst for blood of innocent citizens and the preference for violence which has now become a huge task to handle by the Nigerian security agencies is a pointer to the need to adopt the use of drones also known as (Unmanned Aerial Vehicles) for security surveillance and intelligence gathering. Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) known variously as drones or remotely piloted vehicles (RPVs) are small aircraft that can fly without an onboard human operator. They are autonomous machines that can carry cameras, sensors, communication equipment or other payloads. Drones’ usage has been identified as the most effective for intelligence gathering, aerial surveillance and security monitoring in recent times. The study, however, reveals the various instances of insecurity in Nigeria which include: armed banditry, and robbery, herdsmen killings, ritual killings, kidnapping, Boko Haram attacks, Niger/Delta militancy among others. Factors aiding the upsurge of insecurity and violence are exhibited by the study to include: disconnects between the people and government; weak and poorly funded military establishments; interagency rivalry; absence of intelligence gathering on the part of the security agencies; unemployment for the teaming graduate; non-prosecution of perpetrators of violence in Nigeria among others. In this paper, the various trends in usage of drones for effective security purpose vis-à-vis their application in aerial surveillance in the country are addressed. The study therefore reveals and recommends that drones or UAVs are very effective for aerial surveillance, mapping system, intelligence gathering, and manning security - and it is to be adopted by the security agencies in Nigeria.
