Across Africa, the ability to defend borders, monitor territory and protect critical infrastructure remains heavily dependent on foreign suppliers. Turkish drones patrol borders, Chinese surveillance systems monitor cities and Russian fighter jets form the backbone of several air forces.

Abuja-based startup Terra Industries, founded in 2024 by Nathan Nwachuku and Maxwell Maduka, both in their early twenties, designs and manufactures drones, autonomous surveillance towers and unmanned ground vehicles from facilities in Abuja and Accra. The company claims over 70% of its inputs are sourced locally, including software, airframes, propellers and lithium-ion battery packs.

Terra says its systems currently protect infrastructure valued at approximately $11 billion, including power plants, lithium and gold mines, oil refineries across eight African countries and Canada. The company has moved from private infrastructure security to engagements with Nigeria's defense institutions.

CEO Nathan Nwachuku told Al Jazeera that the company's systems address challenges ranging from maritime surveillance due to piracy in the Gulf of Guinea to border monitoring and protection of energy assets. Terra's second production facility in Ghana is expected to become Africa's largest drone manufacturing hub, with an annual capacity of 50,000 units by 2028.

The company has raised $34 million in seed funding, one of the largest early-stage rounds in African technology, led by 8VC (founded by Palantir co-founder Joe Lonsdale), Lux Capital and Valor Equity Partners. The investment closed in under two weeks.

However, Janice Greaver, director at PASIDA, warns that local production alone does not guarantee defense sovereignty without control over intellectual property and accountability structures. She argues that private capital arming the state without civil society oversight could replace one dependency with another.

Terra's rise reflects growing technical capability in Africa amid worsening security challenges, but whether it leads to genuine defense sovereignty depends on how governments buy, regulate and oversee these technologies.

Source: www.aljazeera.com