Statistics & charts
Data
Data confidence — Casualty and territorial figures vary significantly by source type. Government claims, NGO/tracker data (e.g. ACLED), independent journalism, and militant claims frequently disagree, sometimes by wide margins. Where sources conflict, this platform shows the individual reported figures side by side rather than averaging or picking one. See Sources & Methodology for the full provenance system and known limitations of each source.
Total deaths recorded
53,855
4,224 military · 18,622 civilian · 31,009 militant
Total defence spending (allocated)
₦19.43tn
≈ $31.44bn (each year at its own rate, not today's). Across 17 fiscal years with data.
Equipment gain value
$1.12bn
Reported or estimated (comparable-deal basis, marked "est." in the table) value found for 5 of 14 gain events — the rest aren't counted here.
Equipment loss value
$196.8m
Reported or estimated (comparable-deal/original-acquisition basis, marked "est." in the table) value found for 12 of 15 loss events — the rest aren't counted here.
Internally displaced people
3,655,956
Northeast 2,333,190 (as of Oct 2025) + Northwest/North-central 1,322,766 (as of Oct 2024) — different survey schedules, summed as the closest honest estimate. A separate UNHCR national total (all causes, not conflict-disaggregated) puts it at 3,500,000 as of Dec 2024.
Fatalities by year
Sums the researcher’s reconciled per-incident fatality estimates, attributed to the perpetrating actor. Individual citation-level figures (which may diverge from these totals) are available on each incident and timeline entry.
Internally displaced people
IDP counts over time, primarily from IOM’s Displacement Tracking Matrix and UN OCHA situation reports. Nigeria’s displacement crisis has multiple overlapping drivers (Northeast insurgency, Northwest banditry, and non-conflict causes like flooding) — figures are labeled by cause where the source distinguishes them, and shown as reported, not reconciled into a single number.
Military spending vs. year
Allocated budget (Appropriation Act) vs. actual/reported spend (Ministry of Defence releases), by fiscal year.
Converted using each fiscal year's own USD/NGN rate -- never today's rate applied to a past year, which would understate older years given how much the naira has devalued since. 2009, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023 use a separately sourced historical annual rate (the live rate feed only has daily data from March 2024 onward); other years use that live feed's mid-year snapshot. Not an authoritative central-bank figure.
Current rate (today): 1 USD ≈ ₦1363
Equipment roster
Current fleet by type, not a transaction log — what the armed forces are assessed to actually hold, separate from what’s on order but not yet delivered. Primarily sourced from Wikipedia’s equipment lists (an explicit exception to this site’s usual rule against citing Wikipedia directly — it aggregates many sources and tracks delivered-vs-ordered status better than any single article), spot-checked against defense press where noted. Treat “in service” as a current best estimate, not a verified headcount.
Army
| Type | Category | Origin | In service | On order | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| T-54/T-55 MBT* | Tanks | USSR | 100 | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| T-72AV MBT* | Tanks | Russia/USSR | 10 | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| T-72M1 MBT* | Tanks | Russia/USSR | 31 | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| Vickers Mk3 MBT ('Eagle')* | Tanks | UK | 172 | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| VT-4 Main Battle Tank | Tanks | China | 17 | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| BMP-1 / BMP-2 | APCs / IFVs | USSR/Czechoslovakia | 62 | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| BTR-3U 'Guardian' | APCs / IFVs | Ukraine | 47 | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| BTR-60/BTR-70 | APCs / IFVs | USSR | 24 | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| CS/VP3 'Bigfoot' MRAP* | APCs / IFVs | China | 310 | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| Ezugwu MRAP (all variants)* | APCs / IFVs | Nigeria | 125 | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| Isotrex Legion* | APCs / IFVs | UAE | 60 | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| Isotrex Phantom II* | APCs / IFVs | UAE | 24 | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| Mowag Piranha I | APCs / IFVs | Switzerland | 110 | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| MT-LB | APCs / IFVs | USSR (via Poland) | 67 | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| Saurer 4K 4FA | APCs / IFVs | Austria | 250 | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| Streit Group Spartan/Warrior/Typhoon* | APCs / IFVs | Canada/UAE | 237 | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| Type 89 AFV (ZSD-85)* | APCs / IFVs | China | 60 | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| APR-40 / BM-21 Grad / RM-70 MRL | Artillery | Romania/USSR/Czechoslovakia | 37 | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| D-30, D-74, M46, D-20 towed guns* | Artillery | USSR | 191 | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| OTO Melara Mod 56 (105mm)* | Artillery | Italy | 124 | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| Palmaria SPH | Artillery | Italy | 25 | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| SH-5 / SH-2 self-propelled howitzer* | Artillery | China | 15 | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| Magnus MF-212* | Attack helicopters | Hungary | — | +3 | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| MD 530F Cayuse Warrior* | Attack helicopters | USA | — | +12 | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| Bell UH-1 Iroquois | Transport helicopters | USA | 2 | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| Aerosonde Mk4.7* | UAVs / drones | USA | — | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| Bayraktar TB2 (Army, original batch)* | UAVs / drones | Turkey | 6 | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| Ziyan Blowfish A2* | UAVs / drones | China | — | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
Air Force
| Type | Category | Origin | In service | On order | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A-29B Super Tucano* | Fighter aircraft | Brazil | 12 | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| Alpha Jet* | Fighter aircraft | France | 8 | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| Chengdu F-7/FT-7NI* | Fighter aircraft | China | 8 | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| JF-17 Thunder* | Fighter aircraft | China/Pakistan | 3 | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| M-346FA 'Master'* | Fighter aircraft | Italy | 0 | +24 | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| Bell AH-1Z Viper* | Attack helicopters | USA | — | +12 | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| Mi-24/Mi-35 (combined fleet)* | Attack helicopters | Russia | 15 | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| TAI T129 ATAK* | Attack helicopters | Turkey | 6 | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| ATR 42 MPA, Citation CJ3, King Air 360ER, DA42/DA62 MPP (ISR fleet)* | Transport aircraft | France/USA/Austria | 13 | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| CASA C-295W | Transport aircraft | Spain | — | +3 | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| Dornier 228 | Transport aircraft | Germany | 6 | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| Falcon 7X / Gulfstream G550 / A330 (VIP fleet)* | Transport aircraft | France/USA | 4 | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| Lockheed C-130H | Transport aircraft | USA | 3 | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| AW109 (2025 order)* | Transport helicopters | Italy | 2 | +8 | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| AW189 / AW139 / AW109 (existing fleet) / Bell 412EP / AS332 / EC135* | Transport helicopters | Italy/USA/France | 30 | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| Mi-17/Mi-171 (combined)* | Transport helicopters | Russia | 6 | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| Bayraktar TB2 (NAF, 'Project Guardian')* | UAVs / drones | Turkey | — | +43 | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| CAIG Wing Loong II | UAVs / drones | China | 5 | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| CASC CH-3A/CH-4B | UAVs / drones | China | 7 | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| Magnus Sentinel MF-212* | UAVs / drones | Hungary | — | +20 | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| Tsaigumi* | UAVs / drones | Nigeria | — | +6 | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| Yabhon Flash-20 | UAVs / drones | UAE | 2 | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
Navy
| Type | Category | Origin | In service | On order | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Westland Lynx Mk.89 / AW109 / AW139 (Naval Air Wing)* | Transport helicopters | UK/Italy | 19 | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| ALTI Transition, ADS Aerostar, AR-500B, RemoEye 002B (UAVs)* | UAVs / drones | South Africa/Israel/China/South Korea | 25 | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| Andoni class | Naval vessels | Nigeria | 5 | +2 | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| Centenary class (Type 056) | Naval vessels | China | 2 | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| Ekpe class / Siri class* | Naval vessels | Germany/France | 0 | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| Lerici class minehunter | Naval vessels | Italy | 2 | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| LST-100 (NNS Kada) | Naval vessels | UAE | 1 | +1 | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| Manta class | Naval vessels | Malaysia | 22 | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| MEKO 360 (NNS Aradu)* | Naval vessels | Germany | 1 | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| Nguru / Dorina / Okpoku (OCEA) classes* | Naval vessels | France | 16 | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| OPV 76* | Naval vessels | Turkey | — | +2 | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| Sagbama class | Naval vessels | China | 2 | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| Shaldag class | Naval vessels | Israel | 5 | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| Thunder class OPV (ex-USCG Hamilton) | Naval vessels | USA | 2 | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
| Zaria class | Naval vessels | Malaysia | 4 | — | Wikipedia (Nigerian military equipment lists) |
* hover a starred item for a note on conflicting counts or delivery uncertainty. “In service” is a current best estimate, not a verified headcount; “on order” is separate from that estimate, not included in it.
Equipment losses / gains — event log
Discrete acquisition, capture, and destruction events — presented as a sourced table (the record of what happened) plus a timeline strip below it (what that implies about capability over time), since the transactions themselves aren’t a continuous series but their effect on the fleet is. Delivery status is shown per gain event: an order being placed is not the same as units arriving — “status unaudited” means this hasn’t been checked yet, not that it was delivered.
| Date | Item | Qty | Type | Value | Actor | Supplier / context | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19 Dec 2025 | JF-17 Thunder Block II (fleet grounded) | — | Loss | — | Nigerian Armed Forces | China — Fleet-wide grounding over reported structural and engine issues; quantity affected not specified in available reporting. | Global Defense Corp |
| 19 Dec 2025 | M-346FA fighter jet | 24 | Gain · ordered only | — | Nigerian Armed Forces | Italy — Replacement programme for grounded Chinese-made JF-17 Block II fleet. CORRECTED: this was logged as a completed acquisition but NONE of the 24 aircraft had been delivered as of mid-2026. Only the 3rd airframe had performed its first flight (in Italy, in full NAF livery) as of late April 2026; deliveries are structured in four tranches of six and are not expected complete until mid-to-late 2026 at the earliest. | The Aviationist |
| 15 Jan 2025 | AW-109 helicopter | 10 | Gain · partial (2/10) | — | Nigerian Armed Forces | Italy — Part of a reported EUR 1.2 billion Italian defence package; phased delivery into early 2026. Of the 10-unit Jan 2025 order, ~2 confirmed delivered/inducted (16 May 2025); 3 more completed factory acceptance testing Jun-Jul 2026 but had not yet been delivered as of that reporting; remainder still pending. | Military Africa |
| 19 Dec 2024 | Bayraktar TB2 armed drone ('Project Guardian' expansion) | 43 | Gain · ordered only | — | Nigerian Armed Forces | Turkey — Baykar; expanded order announced Dec 19 2024 under 'Project Guardian'. Dec 2024 announcement and a personnel-training/winging ceremony are confirmed; no source found confirming the drones themselves have physically arrived in Nigeria or entered service, despite one report stating delivery was 'due' Jan 2025. Do not assume delivered. | Punch |
| 03 Sept 2024 | T-129 ATAK attack helicopter | 6 | Gain · delivered | $180.0m(est.) | Nigerian Armed Forces | Turkey — TAI/AgustaWestland; contract signed Jul 2022; first batch (2) delivered Nov 2023, second batch (2) delivered Sep 3 2024, Makurdi. Quantity corrected from a previously-logged 4 to the confirmed total order/delivery of 6 (batch 1: 2 units Nov 2023; batch 2: 2 units Sep 2024; remaining 2 entered service by ~Jan 2025). | Military Africa |
| 01 Oct 2023 | Bayraktar TB2 armed drone system | 6 | Gain · delivered | — | Nigerian Armed Forces | Turkey — Baykar; initial system of 6 UCAVs + 2 ground control stations, photos released Aug 20 2023, delivery slated Oct 2023. | Army Recognition |
| 14 Aug 2023 | Mi-171 helicopter | 1 | Loss | $12.0m(est.) | Nigerian Armed Forces | Crashed on a casualty-evacuation mission near Chukuba village, Shiroro LGA, Niger State; approx. 24 killed. | Al Jazeera |
| 19 Apr 2022 | Super Mushak trainer aircraft | 1 | Loss | — | Nigerian Armed Forces | Kaduna. | Leadership (Nigeria) |
| 18 Jul 2021 | Alpha Jet | 1 | Loss | $10.0m(est.) | Nigerian Armed Forces | Reported shot down by 'bandits' in Zamfara State; pilot Fl. Lt. Abayomi Dairo ejected safely. | Council on Foreign Relations |
| 20 May 2021 | JF-17 Thunder multirole fighter | 3 | Gain · delivered | $184.3m | Nigerian Armed Forces | Pakistan — Pakistan Aeronautical Complex; first aircraft arrived Mar 21 2021, formal induction/handover May 20-21 2021, Makurdi. All 3 physically delivered, but independent reporting says the fleet has since been largely grounded over technical/reliability issues -- only ~1 aircraft reported operational as of early 2026. 'Delivered' here refers to physical handover, not current operational status. | Global Defense Corp |
| 31 Mar 2021 | Alpha Jet (NAF475) | 1 | Loss | $10.0m(est.) | Nigerian Armed Forces | Boko Haram (Shekau faction) released video claiming a shoot-down; NAF disputed the claim, calling it a possible accident. Wreckage found in Sambisa Forest about a year later. | Leadership (Nigeria) |
| 21 Feb 2021 | King Air 350 | 1 | Loss | $12.4m(est.) | Nigerian Armed Forces | Destroyed, Abuja; 7 dead, including Chief of Army Staff Ibrahim Attahiru. | Leadership (Nigeria) |
| 09 Dec 2020 | Kia KLTV-181 tactical vehicle + Toyota Land Cruiser 'technical' | 2 | Loss | $800k(est.) | Nigerian Armed Forces | Captured by ISWAP (Amaq media release) in the Alagarno forest-Timbuktu triangle, Borno; the KLTV-181 had only recently been delivered to the Nigerian Army earlier in 2020. | Global Upfront |
| 06 Feb 2020 | Mi-171E helicopter (modernized) | 2 | Gain · delivered | — | Nigerian Armed Forces | Russia — Ulan-Ude Aviation Plant; second unit arrived Dec 2 2019 (NAF Makurdi, via Il-76), induction ceremony Feb 6 2020, Abuja. | DefenceWeb |
| 18 Nov 2019 | Ezugwu MRAP (locally built) | 28 | Gain · partial (25/28) | — | Nigerian Armed Forces | Nigeria — Nigerian-made; ordered 2019, with a further 52 ordered later. 28 ordered Nov 2019; first batch of 25 actually delivered/handed over Dec 2019. | Overt Defense |
| 02 Jan 2019 | Mi-35 attack helicopter | 1 | Loss | $27.0m(est.) | Nigerian Armed Forces | Destroyed, Damasak, Borno; 5 dead. | Leadership (Nigeria) |
| 01 Jan 2019 | NORINCO CS/VP3 'Bigfoot' MRAP | 200 | Gain · status unaudited | $152.0m | Nigerian Armed Forces | China — Delivered in tranches 2015-2021, including a batch of 50 seen in 2021 alongside 30 Dongfeng Mengshi 4x4s. UNRESOLVED: no source found confirming a 200-unit delivery specifically in 2019 -- Wikipedia's roster breakdown shows tranches of 120 (2015), 40 (2018), 100 (2021), 50 (2024), none matching this logged 200-unit/2019 entry. Flagged for manual re-verification rather than corrected or delivery-audited here. | Military Africa |
| 18 Nov 2018 | 'Eagle' battle tanks + APC (Metele base overrun) | 7 | Loss | $10.5m(est.) | Nigerian Armed Forces | ISWAP overran the Metele base (Guzamala LGA, Borno) and captured/destroyed 6 tanks + 1 APC in the initial attack; a further tank and gun truck were lost in a follow-up evacuation ambush around Nov 24, 2018. ISWAP claimed 'four tanks' carted away plus vehicles/ammo. | Punch |
| 28 Sept 2018 | F-7NI jet (mid-air collision) | 2 | Loss | $29.4m(est.) | Nigerian Armed Forces | Two aircraft, mid-air collision, Abuja. | Leadership (Nigeria) |
| 01 Apr 2018 | Mi-35M/Mi-35P attack helicopter | 4 | Gain · delivered | — | Nigerian Armed Forces | Russia — 6 ordered 2014, additional 12 ordered Sep 2015 (contract confirmed Oct 2019); 2 delivered Dec 2016, 2 more Apr 2018. 4 of a 12-unit order delivered (2 in Dec 2016, 2 in Apr 2018) -- the order was only partially fulfilled overall; this logged event covers the 4 confirmed-delivered units. | DefenceWeb |
| 02 Aug 2017 | A-29 Super Tucano light attack aircraft | 12 | Gain · delivered | $593.0m | Nigerian Armed Forces | United States — FMS via Sierra Nevada Corp/Embraer; contract finalized Nov 2018; first batch of 6 delivered/handed over Kano, Jul 22 2021; second batch before end of 2021. | GovConWire |
| 06 Jul 2017 | Agusta 109 | 1 | Loss | $6.0m(est.) | Nigerian Armed Forces | Borno River. | Leadership (Nigeria) |
| 01 Jun 2017 | Streit Group Warrior/Typhoon/Spartan armored personnel carriers | 177 | Gain · delivered | — | Nigerian Armed Forces | United Arab Emirates — Streit Group, manufactured 2016; first batch delivered to the Nigerian Army. | Military Africa |
| 15 Nov 2016 | AgustaWestland AW101 | 1 | Loss | $55.0m(est.) | Nigerian Armed Forces | Makurdi. | Leadership (Nigeria) |
| 01 Jan 2016 | MRAP vehicles (US surplus donation) | 24 | Gain · delivered | $11.0m | Nigerian Armed Forces | United States — AFRICOM donation; an additional 8 units were reported in process at ~$7.4M. Date corrected from a previously-logged 2018 to 2016, per AFRICOM's own donation announcement and TheCable's contemporaneous coverage. | US Africa Command (AFRICOM) |
| 10 Oct 2015 | F-7NI jet | 1 | Loss | $14.7m(est.) | Nigerian Armed Forces | Destroyed, Kaduna. | Leadership (Nigeria) |
| 29 Aug 2015 | Dornier 228 | 1 | Loss | $9.0m(est.) | Nigerian Armed Forces | Destroyed, Kaduna; 7 dead. | Leadership (Nigeria) |
| 01 Jan 2015 | Mi-171Sh transport helicopter | 6 | Gain · delivered | — | Nigerian Armed Forces | Russia — Rosoboronexport/Ulan-Ude Aviation Plant; order announced Sep 2014, 6 delivered 2015. | Shephard Media |
| 27 Sept 2014 | Panhard ERC-90 Sagaie wheeled AFV + APC | 2 | Loss | — | Nigerian Armed Forces | Captured by Boko Haram near Konduga, Borno, prior to Sep 27 2014 (initially misreported in some press as a T-55 tank). | Council on Foreign Relations |
01 Jul 2009Today
JF-17 Thunder Block II (fleet grounded)
grounded
Mi-171 helicopter
grounded
Super Mushak trainer aircraft
grounded
Alpha Jet
grounded
Alpha Jet (NAF475)
grounded
King Air 350
grounded
Kia KLTV-181 tactical vehicle + Toyota Land Cruiser 'technical'
grounded
Mi-35 attack helicopter
grounded
'Eagle' battle tanks + APC (Metele base overrun)
grounded
F-7NI jet (mid-air collision)
grounded
Agusta 109
grounded
AgustaWestland AW101
grounded
F-7NI jet
grounded
Dornier 228
grounded
Panhard ERC-90 Sagaie wheeled AFV + APC
grounded
Mi-171Sh transport helicopter
active
MRAP vehicles (US surplus donation)
active
Streit Group Warrior/Typhoon/Spartan armored personnel carriers
active
A-29 Super Tucano light attack aircraft
active
Mi-35M/Mi-35P attack helicopter
active
NORINCO CS/VP3 'Bigfoot' MRAP
active
Ezugwu MRAP (locally built)
active
Mi-171E helicopter (modernized)
active
JF-17 Thunder multirole fighter
active
Bayraktar TB2 armed drone system
active
T-129 ATAK attack helicopter
active
Bayraktar TB2 armed drone ('Project Guardian' expansion)
active
AW-109 helicopter
active
M-346FA fighter jet
active
active / in service since acquisition start date not known from sourced data loss / grounding event