Nigeria Police Begin 100-Officer Drone Training Plan With First 30 Graduates
Thirty police officers have completed drone training in Kaduna under a programme planned to equip 100 personnel with unmanned aircraft skills.
A programme aimed at developing drone expertise within the Nigeria Police Force has produced its first group of 30 trained officers, with organisers planning to extend the initiative to 100 police personnel.
The officers completed an introductory unmanned aircraft systems course delivered by Nethawk Aviation Solutions, an indigenous defence technology company based in Kaduna. The participants are graduates of the Nigeria Police Academy in Kano. Nethawk founder and chief executive Flight Lieutenant Adedoyin Akerele (retd.) said the graduation represented the opening phase of the larger training programme.
The instruction went beyond basic drone operation. According to Akerele, Nethawk's 2026 programme includes aviation ground-school studies, introductory and advanced unmanned aircraft training, specialised mission qualifications, operational planning and strategic management. He said the objective is to provide officers with technical skills that can support authorised security assignments involving terrorism, banditry and other criminal threats.
Akerele also outlined Nethawk's broader work in Nigeria's unmanned aviation sector. He said the company has carried out drone operations in more than 65 communities and currently operates four locally developed unmanned aircraft solutions and platforms. He further stated that hundreds of aviation personnel have received training from the company for roles spanning law enforcement, the armed forces, oil and gas, and the power industry.
The Nigeria Police Force described the training as a step towards improving its ability to respond to evolving security challenges. Assistant Commissioner of Police Idri Bunu, representing Kaduna State Commissioner of Police Rabiu Muhammad at the graduation ceremony, said the knowledge gained by the officers should strengthen their effectiveness during security operations.
Bunu also stressed the importance of bringing modern technology into policing as security agencies confront terrorism and other forms of criminal activity. His comments reflected the force's expectation that unmanned aircraft skills can become part of its operational capacity rather than remaining limited to specialist aviation units.
Representatives from other police formations attended the ceremony. Superintendent of Police O. U. Shadrach represented the Police Headquarters Air Wing, while Mando Police Station Divisional Police Officer, Chief Superintendent of Police Shaibu Patiko, was also present.
Nethawk says it intends to continue the programme until the target of 100 trained police officers is reached. Akerele presented the initiative as part of the company's wider effort to build Nigerian expertise in aviation technology and develop locally based technical capacity for security and public-safety operations.