LAGOS — The Nigerian Senate voted in favor of a bill to permit the creation of state police forces on Wednesday, June 24, 2026. This legislation proposes a constitutional change aimed at decentralizing the country's national police force.

The federal government currently controls Nigeria's police force. If fully enacted, the new bill would allow state police forces to operate alongside the existing federal police. The legislation specifies that each of Nigeria's 36 states could establish a police force, provided it meets a minimum national requirement.

Under the proposed bill, federal police would maintain authority over counterterrorism, border patrol, organized crime, and other national security matters. For the bill to pass, two-thirds of the state assemblies must approve it, as it involves a change to the constitution.

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu supports the state police legislation. State governors in Nigeria hold the title of top security chiefs for their respective states, but they do not currently have operational command over police forces.

According to the United Nations, criminal groups and jihadis have killed tens of thousands of people in Nigeria. At least 80 school children are currently in captivity following abductions by militants in both the southern and northern regions of the country.

Ikemesit Effiong, a partner at SBM Intelligence, noted an increase in calls for decentralized policing. "In the light of recent mass kidnappings, the calls for a decentralized police have increased due to the sluggish nature of the government's response to the events, which has been, in part, caused by the structural deficiencies of a centralized policing framework in Nigeria," Effiong said.