The Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA) is a military university based in Kaduna, Nigeria, that trains officer cadets for commissioning into one of the three services of the Nigerian Armed Forces: the Army, the Navy, and the Air Force. The duration of training at the Nigerian Defence Academy is five years (four years academic and one year military).
Contents
History
The Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA) was established on 5 February 1964 as a reorganisation of the Royal Military Forces Training College (RMFTC), which had earlier been renamed the Nigerian Military Training College (NMTC) following Nigeria’s independence in 1960.
At its establishment, the Nigerian Defence Academy was modelled after the Indian National Defence Academy in Khadakwasla, Pune, India. The first intake consisted of a small number of cadets, and early training was conducted with assistance from officers of the Indian Army, including its first Commandant, Brigadier M. R. Varma.
During the early years, the academy played a key role in the professionalisation of the Nigerian Armed Forces, particularly during the Nigerian Civil War (1967–1970), when it helped produce officers for rapid military expansion.
By the late 1970s, the Nigerian Defence Academy had transitioned to predominantly Nigerian instructional staff, following an early period in which training was supported by officers of the Indian Army. This shift formed part of a broader process of indigenisation of military training institutions in Nigeria.
In 1985, the academy began awarding bachelor's degrees to officer cadets in addition to military training, formally integrating academic education with military instruction.
In 2011, the academy admitted its first female cadets into the Regular Combatant Course, marking a major development in its admission policy.
In 2021, the academy was attacked by armed gunmen, resulting in the death of officers and raising concerns about security within military institutions in Nigeria.
Campus and facilities
The Nigerian Defence Academy is located in Afaka, Kaduna State. The academy occupies a large training and academic campus which includes lecture halls, laboratories, cadet hostels, parade grounds, military training fields, a central library and sports facilities.
The academy also maintains facilities for physical combat training, weapons handling and field exercises as part of officer training.
Organization
Administration
The current Commandant is Major General Oluyemi Olatoye. He took over from Major General Abdul Khalifah Ibrahim in October 2025.
Military structure
Headquarters
Directorate of Military Training
Directorate of Administration
NDA Hospital
NDA Provost Command
Administration Battalion
92 MIR
37 NDA Demonstration Battalion
NDA Band
Religious Affairs Department
Legal Department
Civilian Personnel Unit
NDA National Youth Service Corps
Directorate of ICT
Directorate of Logistics
Cadet Brigade
Directorate of Coordination
Directorate of Finance
Academics
Academic structure
The academic branch of the Nigerian Defence Academy is responsible for the academic training of cadets and the administration of civilian academic staff. It also oversees the academy library and the School of Postgraduate Studies. The branch is headed by the Academy Provost, who supervises teaching, research and academic planning within the academy.
In 1985, the academy's academic programme was upgraded to degree-awarding status. This change allowed cadets of the Regular Combatant Course to obtain university degrees while undergoing military training.
The Regular Combatant Course lasts for five years. Cadets spend four years in academic studies and one year in intensive military training before being commissioned into the Nigerian Armed Forces.
The academy offers undergraduate and postgraduate programmes through its faculties, which include the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, Faculty of Engineering, Faculty of Science, Faculty of Military Science and Interdisciplinary Studies, and Faculty of Management Sciences.
School of Postgraduate Studies
Undergraduate Admission
Postgraduate Admission
Faculty of Engineering
Faculty of Science
Faculty of Art and Social Science
Faculty of Military Science
Faculty of Management Science
The Nigerian Defence Academy established its School of Postgraduate Studies in 2004, and it was formally opened in 2005. The school offers master's and doctoral programmes in both military and civilian fields, including defence studies, military history, engineering, sciences and management.
Academic Library
Nigerian Defence Academy Library is the main Library that support both teaching and military training. The library acquired and developed information resources that meet the information needs of cadets, faculty members, officers and civilians staff. The academy library was launched at the end of 1963 to facilitate and enhance effective learning. The Library was finally moved to the permanent site on the 16 of June 2009 for effective teaching and learning to meet the objectives and the current Academy Librarian is Dr. Romoke Opeyemi Quadir.
Research Elements
Centre For Critical Thinking, Teaching and Learning
Centre for Defence Studies And Documentation
Academic Planning Unit
Research Methodology Office (RMO)
Directorate for Collaborations, Affiliations and Linkages
Admission of women
For many years, admission into the Regular Combatant Course of the Nigerian Defence Academy was limited to male cadets. In 2011, the academy admitted its first set of female cadets into the regular combatant programme, marking a major change in its history.
Student life
Cadet Brigade
The Cadet Brigade (CB) is one of the main organs of the NDA. There are a total of 2,990 Regular Combatant cadets in the Academy and 12 allied cadets from Burkina-Faso, Sierra Leone, Republic of Congo, Cameroon and Liberia. The Brigade is commanded by an Army officer and is designated as the Cadets Brigade Commander (CBC). The CB comprises the following:
Headquarters
Mogadishu Battalion
Dalet Battalion
Abyssinia Battalion
Burma Battalion
Ashanti Battalion
Colito Battalion
Counseling Unit
Preparatory Wing
Valiant Magazine Office
NDA Band
The NDA Band is responsible for the provision of military music at regimental occasions such as POP, beating the retreat, dinner nights as well as dance band for social gatherings like wedding ceremonies, mess activities or as the circumstances dictate. The NDA Band headed by an Assistant Director of Music (ADOM).
Commandants
The following is a chronological list of Commandants of the Nigerian Defence Academy since its establishment in 1964.
Alumni
Abdulrahman Bello Dambazau, former Chief of Army Staff
Alexander Ogomudia, former Chief of Defence Staff & Chief of Army Staff
Sani Abacha, former Military ruler of Nigeria
Muhammadu Buhari, President of Nigeria and former Military Head of State
Azubuike Ihejirika, former Chief of Army Staff
Dangiwa Umar, former Governor of Kaduna State
Gideon Orkar, April 1990 coup leader
Tukur Yusuf Buratai, former Chief of Army Staff, Nigerian Army
Ibok-Ete Ekwe Ibas, former Chief of Naval Staff, Nigerian Navy
Kayode Are, former National Security Adviser and Director General State Security Service
Maxwell Khobe, former ECOMOG Peacekeeping Force Commander and Chief of Defence Staff, Sierra Leone
Emeka Onwuamaegbu Former Commandant, NDA
Muhammad Inuwa Idris, Former Commandant, NDA
Oladipo Diya, former Chief of Defence Staff
Owoye Andrew Azazi, former Chief of Defence Staff & Chief of Army Staff
Sultan Sa'adu Abubakar, Sultan of Sokoto
Sambo Dasuki, National Security Adviser