Development Agenda in Nigeria: The Imperatives of New Approach to National Security

Abstract The changing perception of threats to national security has called for a broad understanding of the nature and drivers of security threats to the nation as well as raised the need to rejig our approach to addressing the threats taking into account that modern day security is no longer only the concern of defense but steering the society towards achieving sustainable development. The perceived deep-seated animosity and disillusionment in Nigeria are giving rising to virtual epidemic of threats to national security raising the need for Nigerian policy-makers to pay attention on the softer side of threats to national security as well as adopting new approach to stemming the rising waves of security challenges across the land different from the usual conventional measures. The paper examines the changing nature of security threats to the nation and the imperatives for new designs, programs and strategies to deal with these threats in order to rekindle public confidence. Keywords: Development Agenda, Expanding Threats and National Securit