NextierImage Credit: Impact Nigeria
The Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF) was launched by the Lake Chad Basin states and Benin on October 7, 2014, in a bid to mitigate the growing regionalisation of the Boko Haram terrorism. The regional stabilisation strategy was an expansion of the solely Nigerian task force established on March 21, 1994, by the Abacha administration to checkmate cross-border banditry in the northern region of Nigeria.
With a total strength of about 10,000 troops contributed by Cameroon, Chad, Niger, Nigeria, and Benin, the MNJTF has its headquarters in N’Djamena, Chad. The Lake Chad Basin Commission (LCBC) maintains political leadership and civilian oversight on the Force which is structured into four operational sectors, namely, Mora/Cameroon, Bagasola/Chad, Diffa/Niger and Baga/Nigeria.
The core mandate of the MNJTF is to restore a safe and secure environment in the Lake Chad Basin through regional cooperation.
