The Minister of State for Defence, Bello Matawalle, has held talks with local and international defence industry leaders as Nigeria seeks to strengthen indigenous military production and acquire advanced security technologies.
Matawalle held the meetings on Tuesday, the second day of the Africa International Defence Exhibition 2026, at Eko Atlantic, Lagos.
The engagements brought together government representatives, defence manufacturers and international delegations to explore partnerships and promote technological development in Nigeria’s defence sector.
According to a statement signed by his Personal Assistant, Ahmad Dan-Wudil, the minister met with Türkiye’s Deputy Minister of Defence, Musa Heybet, and General Jeanne of France’s Direction générale de l’armement, the French agency responsible for defence procurement and technology.
He also met the Chief Executive Officer of DICON-D7G, Osman Chennar; the Group Chief Executive Officer of the SPO-DICON joint venture, Obafemi Adekunle; and Azercosmos Sales Manager for West Africa, Nijat Heybatov, among other industry representatives.
Beyond the meetings, Matawalle toured exhibition stands displaying defence equipment, surveillance systems and emerging technologies from Nigeria and other countries.
The exhibitors included DICON-D7G, EPAIL-Nigeria, UAS-Briech, Türkiye’s Secretariat of Defence Industries and China’s Poly Technologies Inc.
The minister also visited the stands of defence technology companies, including Aselsan, Havelsan, MKE, Sky-DAGGER, Rovin-Guard, NORINCO, Resource Industries, Jeil Industrial of South Korea and Vanquish-Nigeria.
Others were NIGUS Tactical Systems and the Nigerian Army Research, Development and Innovation unit.
The technologies on display covered military hardware, unmanned aerial systems, tactical mini-drones, surveillance equipment and cybersecurity solutions.
The exhibition comes amid efforts to expand Nigeria’s domestic defence manufacturing capacity, reduce reliance on foreign suppliers and strengthen the country’s ability to respond to evolving security threats.
AFRIDEX 2026 is being hosted by the Defence Industries Corporation of Nigeria in collaboration with DMG Events UK under the patronage of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
The four-day exhibition, which began on 26 October, is expected to end on Thursday, 29 October.
It has attracted defence and security stakeholders from Africa and other parts of the world to showcase emerging technologies, exchange expertise and explore opportunities for industrial collaboration.
The statement said Matawalle would continue engaging exhibitors and local and international stakeholders as the exhibition approaches its conclusion.
The exhibition is expected to provide opportunities for partnerships in research, technology transfer and local defence production, while supporting Nigeria’s ambition to develop a more self-reliant defence industry.
However, the long-term impact of the engagements will depend on how effectively discussions at the exhibition translate into concrete agreements, technology development and increased domestic manufacturing capacity.
