UK Pledges Partnership With Nigeria To Combat Cyber Threats

The United Kingdom has renewed its pledge to strengthen cybersecurity cooperation with Nigeria, offering technical expertise and intelligence sharing under an existing security partnership.

Speaking at the inaugural seminar on Anticipatory, Cyber, and Digital Diplomacy in Abuja, British High Commissioner Richard Montgomery said the UK was pleased to sponsor the event, noting “shared successes” in combating cyber fraud. He highlighted that the UK–Nigeria cybersecurity Memorandum of Understanding, signed last year, covers threat detection, intelligence building, critical infrastructure protection, digital forensics, and national incident response planning.

Montgomery warned that emerging tools such as artificial intelligence could amplify cyber risks — from disinformation to hate speech — and stressed Britain’s willingness to share lessons from its diplomatic, academic, and private-sector collaborations to help Nigeria build a resilient digital ecosystem.

Foreign Affairs Minister Yusuf Tuggar welcomed the partnership, unveiling a new Cyber Diplomacy Unit to coordinate Nigeria’s international cyber strategy. He said Nigeria must act swiftly to become “a principled, capable and forward-looking actor in the evolving global digital order,” championing African-led solutions, regional cooperation, inclusion of women and youth, and ethical governance of emerging technologies.

Attorney-General Lateef Fagbemi also called for robust legal frameworks to counter cybercrime and manage AI, data privacy, and digital security. He stressed that diplomacy, law, and technology must evolve together to protect national infrastructure, digital sovereignty, and public trust.

The seminar gathered diplomats, security experts, academics, and private-sector leaders, underscoring Nigeria’s push to integrate cyber diplomacy into foreign policy and national security — a response to the country’s exposure to thousands of cyberattacks daily and the growing influence of digital platforms in global affairs.