A Decade of African Defence Reforms: Key Milestones from 2015 to 2025

In the past ten years, Africa’s defence architecture has undergone one of its most ambitious transformations since independence. Driven by rising insecurity, shifting global alliances, and growing regional ambition, militaries across the continent have pivoted from outdated doctrines to modern, flexible frameworks rooted in local realities and international best practices. From Lagos to Kigali, Nairobi to Cairo, Africa’s defence sector is writing a new chapter—one that blends reform, resilience, and regional responsibility.

A Response to Complex Threats

By 2015, the continent stood at a crossroads. The Arab Spring fallout, the expansion of violent extremism in the Sahel and Horn of Africa, and maritime insecurity along the Gulf of Guinea exposed the inadequacies of traditional military institutions. Many were under-resourced, over-politicised, and burdened by colonial-era structures. The need for reform was urgent and clear.

The African Union’s 2015–2063 Agenda placed security sector reform at the heart of continental integration and peacebuilding. The same year, Nigeria’s restructured Defence Headquarters began streamlining command operations and initiating what would become a decade-long military recalibration in West Africa.

From Doctrine to Deployment: The Turning Points

Several milestones marked this reform era:

1. Nigeria’s Super Camp Strategy (2019–2025): To combat Boko Haram’s adaptive tactics, the Nigerian Army centralised operations into fortified “super camps,” paired with psychological operations and community outreach. While controversial, the strategy reduced base vulnerabilities and improved rapid response capabilities.
2. Rwanda’s Military Professionalism Model: Rwanda emerged as the continent’s benchmark for defence professionalism. Its reforms included gender integration in command structures, improved human rights compliance, and strategic international deployments — from Mozambique to the Central African Republic — that fused soft and hard power.
3. AU’s Peace and Security Council Reforms (2020): Amid critiques of sluggish response to crises, the African Union overhauled its Peace and Security Council’s early warning and rapid deployment mechanisms. This included enhanced operational readiness for the African Standby Force and standardised protocols for cross-border operations.
4. The Egypt–Sudan Joint Defence Pact (2021): In Northeast Africa, Egypt and Sudan signed a historic pact that enhanced interoperability, intelligence sharing, and joint training exercises in response to regional flashpoints including Libya, Ethiopia, and the Red Sea corridor.
5. SADC’s SAMIM Force in Mozambique (2021–2024): The deployment of the Southern African Development Community’s Mission in Mozambique marked the first time a regional bloc launched a counterterrorism operation within a member state. While resource-intensive, it set a precedent for collective regional action.

Technology, Transparency, and the Fight Against Corruption

Perhaps the most silent yet profound reform came in the integration of technology and transparency into military affairs. Ghana introduced biometric systems to curb “ghost soldier” payroll fraud. Kenya launched blockchain-based procurement oversight mechanisms. Nigeria’s Defence Intelligence Agency revamped its cyber capabilities to counter fake news and online radicalisation.

Meanwhile, regional defence industries slowly gained traction. South Africa’s Denel, Nigeria’s DICON, and Egypt’s Arab Organisation for Industrialisation explored joint ventures and local arms manufacturing, seeking self-sufficiency and reduced dependence on external suppliers.

Civil Oversight and Democratic Accountability

No reform could be complete without confronting the military’s role in governance. Between 2015 and 2025, over a dozen African states undertook legal and institutional reforms to demarcate military and civilian domains. In Sierra Leone, defence white papers guided civilian-led oversight of military budgets. In Ethiopia, constitutional amendments limited the military’s political interference amid ongoing federal tensions.

Notably, General Christopher Musa of Nigeria used public platforms to affirm the military’s allegiance to democratic principles. “A professional military must defend the constitution, not contest power,” he remarked at the 2025 Civil-Military Conference in Abuja — a position increasingly echoed across the continent.

Enduring Obstacles and Unfinished Agendas

Despite remarkable progress, the reform journey remains incomplete. Several African states continue to grapple with:

• Politicisation of the armed forces, particularly in fragile democracies like Chad, Mali, and Sudan.
• Budget constraints and aid dependency, with over 70% of peacekeeping funds still sourced externally.
• Limited training in human rights compliance, especially among junior and mid-level officers.

In places like the Sahel, coups and counter-coups in the early 2020s reminded the continent of the dangers of reform without democratic consolidation.

Lessons for the Future

The decade-long experiment in African defence reform yields critical lessons:

1. Reform must be continuous, not episodic. Institutionalising change requires legal frameworks and political commitment beyond personalities.
2. Regionalism matters. ECOWAS, SADC, and IGAD must expand joint command structures and pooled logistics to tackle transnational threats.
3. Technology is a gamechanger. Cyber warfare, drones, and AI-enhanced surveillance are no longer luxuries — they are necessities.
4. Civilians must lead. Defence policy cannot be left solely to generals and foreign contractors.

As 2025 closes the chapter on a decade of change, the real test begins: sustaining the reforms and converting momentum into doctrine. Africa’s defence evolution must now be codified — in training manuals, in officer promotion criteria, and in budget priorities.

Ultimately, the continent is inching closer to the vision of an African security ecosystem that is professional, ethical, indigenous, and accountable. One that does not just respond to crises but prevents them. One that is not imposed from the outside but crafted from within.