The Nigerian Navy has strengthened its manpower base with the induction of 1,962 newly trained ratings, a move aimed at boosting the country’s capacity to tackle escalating security challenges both on land and at sea.
The fresh intakes were formally inducted on Saturday by the Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Idi Abbas, during the Batch 37 Passing Out Parade of the Nigerian Navy Basic Training School (NNBTS) in Onne, Rivers State.
Their deployment comes at a time when Nigeria continues to battle a complex matrix of threats ranging from oil theft, sea piracy and illegal bunkering to terrorism, banditry, kidnapping and violent extremism.
Vice Admiral Abbas stressed the strategic importance of the new recruits, explaining that they will serve aboard naval warships engaged in the fight against oil theft and maritime crime, while also supporting ground forces in ongoing internal security operations.
He said the recruitment exercise became imperative to reinforce national security efforts and safeguard the maritime sector, which remains critical to Nigeria’s economic stability.
The country’s oil production, he noted, had improved between 2022 and 2025 owing to persistent surveillance, rapid response actions and stricter enforcement measures deployed by the Navy.
The naval chief highlighted that the Basic Training School, since its establishment in 1975, has trained no fewer than 27,506 personnel, maintaining its long-standing mandate of transforming civilians into disciplined and competent ratings.
The 1,962 recruits underwent an intensive six-month programme that forms part of the Navy’s long-term capacity-building strategy.
In response to evolving threats, the training curriculum has recently been upgraded to include combat swimming, field-craft, and visit, board, search and seizure drills, alongside onboard training, live-firing exercises and outdoor manoeuvres designed to bridge the gap between theory and operational realities.
Vice Admiral Abbas said the curriculum had been restructured to better equip personnel for a security environment he described as volatile and increasingly complex.
He urged the graduating ratings to uphold the Navy’s core values of professionalism, integrity and teamwork while maintaining strict discipline and obedience throughout their service.
During his visit, the Chief of Naval Staff also inaugurated several new projects at the training school, including a bakery, remodelled residential quarters, an officers’ mess, a command office complex and a golf course.
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