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Article

Open Access

Regulation of Private Security Companies and Equitable Policing in Nigeria

Author(s)

Plangshak Musa Suchi

Full-Text PDF Download XML 2319 Views

DOI:10.17265/2159-5526/2017.03.003

Affiliation(s)

Bingham University, Karu, Nigeria

ABSTRACT

Private security companies through the services they provide complement the police in crime prevention, order maintenance, and general improvement of security in societies thereby contributing to sustainable national development. In order to fully benefit from their contribution and prevent them from engaging in illegal activities, states formulate and enforce policies that seek to regulate their activities. This paper examines the regulation of private guards companies in Nigeria using Abuja as its empirical core. The main aim is to promote understanding of how the private security industry is regulated and evaluate the effectiveness of the existing regulatory policy. Data for the paper were generated from in-depth interviews with the NSCDC (Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps), analysis of the policy for PSCs (private security companies), and a review of the annual performance report of the regulatory agency. The results revealed that the current system of PSC regulation is characterized by a lack of specialty classification of private security licences, limited regulatory scope with a focus on licensing of companies, lack of uniform standards on training, and high cost/difficulties in obtaining operational license. The paper concludes that the current regulatory setup for PSCs in Nigeria is ineffective and unsustainable and recommends an urgent review of the legal framework to alien its provisions with global standards and practices in the private security industry.

KEYWORDS

Private security, equitable policing, regulatory policy, sustainable development

Cite this paper

Sociology Study, March 2017, Vol. 7, No. 3, 146-159

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