List Of 10 States That Have Established Presidential Forest Guards Initiative

The Presidential Forest Guards Initiative is a Federal Government program (launched by President Bola Tinubu in May 2025) coordinated by the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) in partnership with state governments. It aims to secure forests and ungoverned spaces against banditry, kidnapping, and other crimes.

As of early August 2026, over 9,000 personnel have been trained under this federal initiative across 10 states:

Initial/pilot batch (over 7,000 trained and graduated in December 2025): 

1. Borno,

2. Sokoto,

3. Yobe,

4. Adamawa,

5. Niger,

6. Kwara,

7. Kebbi.

Latest phase (over 2,000 more trained):

8.  Kaduna,

9. Edo,

10. Kogi.

These guards are typically recruited locally (often from affected communities), trained intensively (including firearms, patrols, ethics, and human rights), and deployed to forest areas, with state governments supporting welfare and operations.

Additional Context on State-Level Efforts

Many states have also established or expanded their own forest guard/ranger programs (sometimes predating or running parallel to the federal initiative). Examples include:

• Plateau, Anambra, Enugu, and others — reported recruitment or operations.
• Bauchi — deployed over 2,000 forest security personnel/vigilantes.
• Ondo, Ekiti, and others — have active or recruiting forest guards/rangers for reserves and borders.

The federal program is being expanded nationwide over time, with goals of recruiting tens of thousands more. Implementation varies by state due to local security needs and resources. For the absolute latest on a specific state, checking recent official ONSA or state government statements is recommended, as deployments are ongoing.