By Usman Aliyu
The 2026 Inter-Brigade Corporals and Below Competition of the 2 Division, Nigerian Army opened in Benin on Monday.
The competition is expected to sharpen combat readiness and operational efficiency of personnel.
The week-long exercise being hosted by the 4 Brigade was declared open by the General Officer Commanding (GOC) 2 Division, Maj.-Gen. Chinedu Nnebeife.
Nnebeife represented by the Commander, 4 Brigade, Benin, Brig.-Gen. Ahmed Balogun, said that the timing of the competition was critical, given the evolving security challenges confronting the country.
”This event could not have come at a better time than now when there are growing concerns on insecurity challenges confronting the nation, which the Nigerian Army is increasingly engaged to counter,” he said.
He explained that the competition was designed to strengthen combat proficiency, leadership capacity and teamwork among junior soldiers whom he described as the backbone of field operations.
”The essence of the Corporals and Below competition is to improve combat proficiency, leadership skills, organisational ability, teamwork and endurance to prepare them for countering these security challenges,” he also said.
The GOC added that the exercise aligned with the Chief of Army Staff’s command philosophy of transforming the Nigerian Army into a more professional, adaptable, combat-ready and resilient force capable of decisively discharging its constitutional responsibilities.
He emphasised that realism in training and operational decisiveness remained central to achieving the objective, while reaffirming commitment to ridding the division’s area of responsibility of criminal elements.
Nnebeife assured that adequate arrangements had been made for a seamless exercise and urged participants to uphold professionalism and discipline throughout the competition.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that participating formations include 4 Brigade, Benin; 12 Brigade, Lokoja; 22 Brigade, Ilorin; 32 Brigade, Akure; 42 and 52 Engineer Regiments, Ibadan; as well as the 2 Division Garrison, Ibadan.
The competition will feature drills, combat swimming, obstacle crossing, weapon handling and shooting as well as map reading.(NAN)(www.nannews.ng)