Breaking: Tinubu Approves Expansion of Nigerian Army to 12 Divisions, Full List and Details Emerge
- President Bola Ahmed Tinubu approved a major Nigerian Army restructuring that will see the force expand from its current setup to 12 full divisions
- The expansion includes recruiting 28,000 additional personnel, with new divisions covering every geopolitical zone across Nigeria
- The Army will implement the changes across two phases, with key divisions to be established by September and December 2026
Legit.ng journalist Ridwan Adeola Yusuf has over four years of experience covering security issues and counterinsurgency in Nigeria and across Africa.
FCT, Abuja - Amid insecurity in Nigeria, President Bola Tinubu on Thursday, July 23, 2026, approved the expansion of the Nigerian Army to 12 divisions.
Legit.ng reports that the move includes plans to recruit 28,000 additional personnel as part of a sweeping restructuring of the country's land forces.
Source: Facebook
Tinubu expands Nigerian Army nationwide
The new force structure distributes military coverage across all 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), with each division assigned responsibility for a specific cluster of states.
The full list of divisions approved under the plan is as follows:
1. 1 Division – Kaduna (Kaduna, Kano, Katsina and Jigawa states)
2. 2 Division – Ibadan (Oyo, Osun, Ekiti and Ondo states)
3. 3 Division – Jos (Plateau, Bauchi and Gombe states)
4. 5 Division – Makurdi (Benue, Nasarawa and Kogi states)
5. 6 Division – Port Harcourt (Rivers, Akwa Ibom and Cross River states)
6. 7 Division – Maiduguri (Borno and Yobe states)
7. 8 Division – Sokoto (Sokoto, Kebbi and Zamfara states)
8. 9 Division – Ilorin (Kwara and Niger states)
9. 10 Division – Jalingo (Taraba and Adamawa states)
10. 81 Division – Lagos (Lagos and Ogun states)
11. 82 Division – Enugu (Enugu, Anambra, Abia, Ebonyi and Imo states)
12. 83 Division – Benin City (Edo, Delta and Bayelsa states)
Nigerian Army begins major restructuring
The rollout will proceed in two stages. The first phase covers the creation of the 5 Division in Makurdi, the 9 Division in Ilorin, and the 10 Division in Jalingo, alongside the reorganisation of existing formations. This phase is due for completion by September 2026.
The second phase, which includes establishing the 83 Division in Benin City and carrying out further reorganisation across the force, is scheduled to be finalised by December 2026.
The expansion represents one of the most significant structural changes to the Nigerian Army in recent years, extending formal divisional command to states and regions that previously fell under broader formation zones. The new arrangement means every geopolitical zone in Nigeria will have at least one dedicated Army division within its territory.
The full statement on the Nigerian Army expansion, shared on X by presidential spokesperson Bayo Onanuga, is reproduced below:
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Terrorists kidnap, kill 106 health workers
Earlier, Legit.ng reported that armed groups, criminal kidnappers, and jihadist fighters abducted 91 health workers and killed 15 others across 101 separate attacks on Nigerian healthcare facilities between 2023 and 2025, according to a new international report.
The figures come from the 'Care in the Crosshairs: Violence Against Health Care in Conflict 2025' report, published by the Safeguarding Health in Conflict Coalition. The data was compiled using Insecurity Insight's global monitoring system and covers incidents across the three-year window.
Source: Legit.ng
