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Nigerian President Bola Tinubu on Monday called for the establishment of a regional counter-terrorism center that will serve as a hub for intelligence sharing, operational coordination, and capacity building throughout Africa.

Speaking at an African high-level meeting on counter-terrorism in Abuja, the Nigerian capital, Tinubu said Africa must take a comprehensive approach to combating terrorism, not only through might, but by addressing the root causes of the scourge, which include poverty, inequality, and social injustice.

He emphasized that while seeking to address the root causes of terrorism, Africa must also attack “the roots that feed this evil branch — ransom and illegal mining — as terrorism evolves and perfects ways to continuously finance, re-equip, and re-supply itself for its sinister mission.”

Tinubu noted billions upon billions of dollars that legitimate governments should be using to sculpt better societies by providing education, healthcare, and food for its citizens now go to pay for weapons and response to mayhem, adding that “not only does it kidnap people, but it also kidnaps precious resources.”

While explaining the connection between illegal mining and terrorism financing, the Nigerian president charged the international community to rise to the moral and legal obligation to help in fighting against the challenge.

He said Nigeria would be “knocking on this door of the international community” to answer the call for justice, peace, and fair play in that area, noting that the key to the collective efforts against terrorism was the urgent need for a fully operational regional counter-terrorism center.

He added that the African region must strengthen existing counter-terrorism structures while underscoring the importance of a regional standby force that includes tackling terrorism as part of its mandate.