The Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF) is a combined military force comprising troops from Nigeria, Niger, Chad, Cameroon, and Benin, mandated to conduct counter-insurgency operations against Boko Haram and the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) in the Lake Chad Basin.
The force traces its origins to a 1994 arrangement among Lake Chad Basin Commission (LCBC) members aimed at cross-border banditry, but it was substantially restructured in 2015 in response to the rapid territorial expansion of Boko Haram. At a January 2015 LCBC summit in Niamey and subsequent African Union Peace and Security Council deliberations, member states agreed to reconstitute the MNJTF as a counter-terrorism formation with an authorized strength of roughly 8,700 personnel. Benin, while not an LCBC member, joined as a troop contributor. Its headquarters is in N'Djamena, Chad, and command rotates among contributing states, traditionally held by a Nigerian Force Commander.
The MNJTF operates across four sectors aligned with national borders: Sector 1 (Cameroon, headquartered in Mora), Sector 2 (Chad, Baga-Sola), Sector 3 (Nigeria, Baga/Monguno), and Sector 4 (Niger, Diffa). Notable operations include Operation Gama Aiki (2016) targeting insurgent enclaves in the Lake Chad islands and Operation Lake Sanity (launched 2022) aimed at clearing remnants on the lake's shorelines.
The force has been credited with degrading Boko Haram's conventional capabilities and recovering territory, but it has faced persistent challenges: uneven funding (with contributions from the African Union, European Union, and bilateral donors including the United Kingdom and United States), coordination difficulties among national contingents, allegations of human rights abuses by member forces documented by Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, and the splintering of the insurgency into competing factions after the 2021 death of Boko Haram leader Abubakar Shekau. The MNJTF remains a leading example of an African-led sub-regional security response operating outside a formal UN peacekeeping mandate.
Example
In May 2022, the MNJTF launched Operation Lake Sanity, deploying troops from Nigeria, Niger, Chad, and Cameroon to clear ISWAP and Boko Haram fighters from islands in Lake Chad.
Frequently asked questions
Nigeria, Niger, Chad, Cameroon, and Benin. The first four are Lake Chad Basin Commission members; Benin joined as a contributor when the force was reconstituted in 2015.
Keep learning