President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has signed the new Defence Industries Corporation of Nigeria (DICON) Bill 2023 into law. This is according to a State House press release signed by the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Chief Ajuri Ngelale.
The Defence Industries Corporation of Nigeria was established on August 1, 1964, by an Act of Parliament and revised as the DICON Act in Chapter 94 of the Laws of the Federation, 2004.
The Defence Industries Corporation of Nigeria Act, 2023, repeals the previous iteration of the Defence Industries Corporation of Nigeria Act and empowers the Defence Industries Corporation of Nigeria to:
(1) Operate, maintain, and control subsidiaries and ordnance factories to manufacture, store, and dispose of ordnance and ancillary stores and material.
(2) Establish the Defence Industry Technology, Research, and Development Institute (DITRDI) to create an elaborate scientific and research-based technological foundation for Nigeria’s defence industry through the leveraging of combined, multi-disciplinary research from multiple military research institutes for application that leads to commercialization and the development of new military technology and capacity in Nigeria.
(3) Provide a comprehensive regulatory framework for the regulation of the manufacturing, distribution, storage, and disposal of defence articles in Nigeria.
(4) Incentivize the development of a nuanced financing architecture that enables private capital to facilitate research, development, and production in the defence sector in a transparent and predictable fashion.
The Defence Industries Corporation of Nigeria Bill, 2023, was sponsored by the Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Defence, Hon. Babajimi Benson (APC — Ikorodu Federal Constituency)
DICON over the years have been evolving into a leading local manufacturer of arms and equipment for the Nigerian military and have gone into partnership with local manufacturers such as Proforce to design and produce combat vehicles such as MRAP and other fortified military patrol vehicles with assault weapons.
