Community Security Manual

Security is a universal entitlement and a core part of

human well-being. Where people cannot enjoy security,
poverty and injustice are prevalent.

People are always at the centre of interlinked peace,

security and development interventions. Unfortunately,
security is still often considered as primarily a state
issue. This misses the truth that insecurity is a personal
experience depicted by absence of protection, absence
of vigilance, absence of requisite knowledge and lastly
absence of capacity. These insecurities are barriers to
development and they contribute to cycles of violence
that prevent people leading safe, fulfilling and dignified
lives.

In this manual, we introduce an approach to

responding to these community insecurities, which we
refer to as ‘Tactical Community Security Solutions’
(TCSS). Tactical Community Security Solution is a
powerful approach that builds human security and
contributes to wider peace and development goals
within a community. Tactical Community Security
Solution is designed to be a principal tool shaping the
policies and interventions of rural community security
actors.

Tactical Community Security Solution identifies and

responds to local perceptions of security by working

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through both conventional and unconventional
methodologies – often acting as a bridge between
these two methodologies. Tactical Community Security
Solutions rejects the idea that security is the sole
preserve of the state. The public is involved as having
both the right and the opportunity to articulate security
priorities and to be a part of planning and
implementing responses.

Tactical Community Security Solution is a flexible

approach and there is no one template to fit all
contexts as every community has its own peculiarity
because the degree of insecurity is further determined
by a people’s economic lifestyle, social lifestyle and
cultural disposition.

The main purpose of this manual is to explain the

principles underpinning our Tactical Community
Security interventions, with outlined practical
approaches to implementing them, while at the same
time guiding community leaders on steps to proactively
make their communities a safe heaven.

It is further aimed at community leaders – particularly

traditional rulers and elected community heads – and
aims to help them work through the steps involved in
planning, implementing, evaluating and improving
Community Security interventions.

What Is Community Security & Why Is It Important?

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Community Security is a people-centred approach to
tackling security challenges, by actively engaging the
community in identifying its security concerns,
formulation of proactive and interventionist strategies
and development & implementation of coordinated
responses, which would ultimately culminate in the
community’s ability to build capacity and willingness to
identify and respond effectively to security challenges
using full community inclusivity and participation.
Community security empowers communities to hold
accountable those who are charged with security
delivery.

For Community Security to be effective it must provide

methodology that will enhance peace, security and
development, because it allows communities to define
and implement interventions tailored to their exact
needs and priorities, and in this way helps communities
find creative, collaborative and preventative solutions to
security challenges, including:

 Lack of active citizenship and public engagement

on issues related to security.
 Lack of effective models for providing security.
 Lack of decent opportunities for income
generation and better livelihoods.
 The need to reform and reintegrate identified
deviants into the community.
 The need to anticipate security challenges and
work on them proactively and constructively.

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Community Security As A Process:

Community Security is a process focused on promoting

a community driven approach to understanding and
providing security. The process uses participatory
assessments and planning and seeks to contribute to a
full range of security and development improvements
as decided by communities themselves.

The key is that the problems addressed, the process

behind it, and the results achieved, contribute to a
more secure environment.

There is a five-step approach to Community Security

Process that has both short-term and long-term
applicability.

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Community Security Process Circle Explained:

1. Preparation & Challenge Analysis

This is about preliminary programme design and

planning:

Detailed problem analysis is the first step in Tactical

Community Security Solution. It is necessary to identify
the underlying causes of insecurity and to inform the
design and application of appropriate responses. It is
an iterative or repetitious process that will guide
subsequent steps, to ensure interventions remain
relevant to changing security dynamics.

A problem analysis will inform all-encompassing

theories of change that provide a rationale for
Community Security interventions and testable
assumptions of the kind of changes TCSS might
contribute towards, as well as methods of working
which are appropriate to the insecurity situation of the
community.

2. Identifying & Prioritising Communities’

Security Problems & Needs

Community led analysis builds on challenge analysis

and helps communities identify and prioritise their own
security concerns and determine what actions they can
take to address them. This is crucial if the procedure is

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to be effective and reflective of actual community
needs.

The Community Security Council CSC members, wider

community members and key stakeholders, including
security service providers, should all be involved in a
process to identify the underlying sources of insecurity.

This can be done in an expanded CSC meeting that

brings together different stakeholders for the purpose
of making the contribution of all members heard.

The exact components of the assessment process

should be in tandem as with problem analysis.
Similarly, the type of assessment that is conducted and
the questions and tools that are used will depend on
the level of education of the local people and other
stakeholders. The following guiding enquiry questions
should be answered, at least in part, by the end of the
assessment process:

 Profile Of The Challenge:

What are the historical, political, economic, social,
security, cultural, demographic and environmental
issues that define the overall challenge?

 Identification Of Security Problems:

What crime, violence and security threats have
people experienced?

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 What has been the timeline of security problems
experienced in the community?
Where and when have security-problems occurred?
What weapons have been used and where do they
come from?
What types of crime/violence are most prevalent?
Who has been involved (which age and gender)?
Which groups are most vulnerable and what makes
different groups feel insecure? (E.g. men, women,
and youth.)

 Analysis Of The Causes Of Security Problems:

What were the immediate triggers?
What were the deeper root causes?

 Analysis Of (Formal And Informal) Security

Provision:
Who are the formal security providers and what
capacities are in place for them to provide security?
What are the gaps?
How accessible are security providers?
What non-state mechanisms are providing security
and how effective are they?
What are the perceived strengths and weaknesses
of security provision?
What links, if any, exist between the public and
state security providers?

 Stakeholder Analysis:

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 What are the interests, goals, positions, capacities
and relationships of those engaged in or being
affected by conflict or insecurity?
What role can be identified for each stakeholder in
improving security in the community?

3. Developing An Action Plan - Analysing

Problems & Planning Responses:

Action planning is the process by which community

members, local authorities and security providers
articulate their objectives, activities, roles and
responsibilities for addressing the safety and security
concerns they have prioritised. It may take more than
one meeting.

Action planning is an extension of the prioritisation

phase and should involve the CSC members, security
providers and other key actors identified as having
influence over people’s security. Together, it is their
responsibility to develop a plan that clearly outlines a
roadmap for activities that is realistic and achievable
and will yield visible results. Communities should define
their own criteria for what successful changes will look
like. The plan is owned by and accountable to the
community, and should build upon existing capacities
and resources.

In articulating a community’s shared understanding of

its members’ security needs, priorities and shared

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responsibilities for making progress, action plans should
be designed in a way that is understandable and
accessible to the stakeholders involved. Stakeholders
should agree on a clear vision of the types of changes
they want to achieve. This does not have to be
complicated, and visions may be agreed verbally or put
in writing as more formal theories of change. What is
important is that action plans and activities work
towards common visions that benefit the community as
a whole.

The core component of action plans should be a clear

statement of workable, time-bound actions that
stakeholders will implement – with a clear allocation of
responsibility for progress. It is important to ensure
that the contribution of the agreed steps towards
fulfilment of the overall objective is clear. There is
almost no limit on the actions that can be included, as
long as they are achievable within the capacities and
resources available to the community.

Capacity is perhaps the biggest consideration.

Regardless of the operational environment,
expectations have to be managed, and planning has to
be realistically matched to the capacity of the CSC.

Action planning also marks the beginning of the entire

process. Within a community’s action plan, all
stakeholders are expected to agree on criteria for
success and set some specific indicators to be

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monitored over time. Information gathered during the
problem analysis and security assessment about how
insecurity is manifested, and the factors and actor
relationships underlying it, can be a good place to start
thinking about issues that can be monitored to give an
indication of progress. Such information can also
provide valuable baselines against which to measure
changes at regular review dates.

4. Implement Action Plan & Monitor:

The action plan provides a roadmap for the

implementation of Tactical Community Security and
serves as a pact that binds a community and their
security providers to working together. The roadmap
involves small steps and solutions strategically
formulated and articulated that give the community a
fortress-like existence.

Roles and responsibilities behind each action will have

been decided upon during the action planning.
However, moving from planning to action can be
challenging for communities, especially at first:
stakeholders can take time to adjust to the unfamiliar
situation where they have taken on a share of the
collective responsibility for improving security.

The role of stakeholders who have played a role in the

development of the action plan in ensuring its
implementation is particularly important. Continuous

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engagement by said stakeholders and regular
monitoring of activities and results can help generate
and maintain the momentum for implementation.

The action plans needs to be flexible, adjusting and

adapting in relation to:
 Changes to the implementation context – in
particular threat dynamics and new and emerging
security threats.
 The way the Community Security activities are
affecting the local environment.
 Changes in the stated needs and resources of the
beneficiary communities.

5. The Action Plan Proper – Tactical Community

Security Solution (TCSS):

This describes in details the complete working of the

Tactical Community Security Solution (TCSS), the
details of which is provided at pages 16 - 22 of this
manual.

6. Evaluate, Learn, & Plan Improvements:

Evaluations:
This is the process of measuring progress or otherwise
of the Tactical Community Security Solution –
TCSS. Through this process, the community
determines if the challenges are deescalating or

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escalating. In other words, it is a tool for monitoring
overall progress.

The evaluation process is by way of stakeholders

answering a set of probing questions, the answers to
which lays bare the outcome of the TCSS effect so far,
either in the positive or the negative.
Sample Solution Effectiveness Evaluation
Questions:

Questions:

 What do you think of the overall security situation

in the community?
 What do you think of the situation regarding
domestic violence?
 What do you think of the situation regarding
violence against women?
 What do you think the situation regarding
substance abuse among youth?
 How effective are the community security
operatives?
 What do you think of the community’s relationship
with the community security operatives?
 What do you think of the community’s relationship
with the police?

The above questions are expected to attract one of the

following responses:
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 Significantly improving (1)
 Improving (2)
 Neither improving nor getting worse (3)
 Getting worse (4)
 Getting significantly worse (5)

From the above responses, it is determined how

effective or otherwise the TCSS is to the community.

Community Security participatory evaluation brings

together relevant programme stakeholders and
beneficiaries to capture information about changes
caused by the TCSS. It gathers information on
transformations in the relationships and behaviours
behind insecurity, and looks to understand how those
changes have affected people’s experience of security.
Evaluations attempt to understand wider impacts as
well as outcomes amongst direct beneficiaries. It will
also capture information about other factors that may
have contributed to any changes, or unexpected
changes (positive and negative), that may have
happened as a result of the TCSS.

Sample Questions For Participatory Evaluations:

 What do people consider the most significant

changes over the last year, and why?
 What has caused these changes?

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 Were there any changes that were unexpected, or
negative?
 Are the changes sustainable?
 Are we working with the right people at the right
level in the most resourceful way?
 How can the system improve next year?

Learning & Improving:

The main purpose of evaluation is to improve TCSS

and stakeholder input through feedback of lessons
learned; and to provide a basis for accountability. From
the lessons learned and its application, Community
Security activities are bound to be more effective.

Lessons learned will inform a new TCSS cycle.

Information from the evaluation will update the
problem analysis, reprioritise the communities’ needs,
and lead into another round of action planning. This
ensures that the TCSS cycle continues, continually
reinforcing itself and providing the basis for
communities to improve on their efforts to identify and
address causes of insecurity.

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 Tactical Community Security Solution (TCSS)
Based On Criminal Demobilization Action (CDA)

This is a pro-active synergized grass-root security

solution designed to be applied to any rural community
in Nigeria.

Good community security involves good proactive

measures which means tackling crime before it happen
and also having the ability to tackle crime head-on
while it is ongoing and having the capacity to

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investigate any slips that managed to happen
unchecked.
A community security should never be an afterthought.
Too often, people beef up their security after
something nasty has happened. Acting proactively will
give a community a head start over the criminals.

Consequently therefore, a community needs to be

made a real or imaginary fortress, an impregnable
territory or enclave which sends a discouraging
message that attacking such community comes with
dangers for the criminal as such an attack will involve a
great deal of effort & very little reward in the unlikely
event that the criminal succeeds.

Background:

TCSS is a simplified but comprehensive and cost

effective security solution targeted at the community
and by the community working from within. It is
guaranteed, within one month of full deployment, to
crash all types of crimes and insecurity that are known
to occur in any rural community, especially ones that
involve external incursion – such as kidnappings and
armed robbery.

Aim:

The objective of this elite security solution is to make

participating community known as the Area of

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Operation (AO) impregnable, and should any armed
robbery or kidnapping take place, to frustrate the
armed robber or kidnapper to submission. Its
application totally makes it impracticable for the dare
devil kidnapper or armed robber to operate successfully
or escape after an operation. It gives the (AO) the
semblance of an Impregnable Fortress.

Compatibility With Conventional Security:

Indeed, the TCSS is very compatible with conventional

security and policing. Its simplistic application makes it
flexible, adjustable and compatible with other systems
and solutions. Also, while conventional law enforcement
takes care of the Front End, the TCSS takes care of
the Back End i.e., while conventional law enforcement
works from the outside, TCSS works from within the
community.

Success Of TCSS Depends On The Following:

 Good intelligence gathering effort,

 Solid planning, assessment & enforcement,
 Effective & good communication network,
 Availability of 24 hours watch man power,
 Effective security awareness programme,
 Effective lockdown mechanism (barriers),
 Effective alert mechanism (sounder)
 Simplified low cost security posts
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 Affordable & sustainable source of power supply
 Practiced “be-your-brother’s-keeper” attitude.

Basic Constituents Of TCSS:

For any community to successfully apply TCSS, certain

prerequisites MUST be put in place within the
community, and they are as follows:

A. Intelligence Gathering Mechanism:

There must be in place, a solid intelligence
gathering mechanism snooping for
information around the community and its
zones.

B. Zoned Communities:

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 Your communities need to be divided into
zones for better Physical Security
Hardening, & incident containment within
any attacked zones.

C. Create A Preferred Access Road (PAR):

Create Hardening in and around the
community by restricting egress and ingress
at certain times of the night to a road to be
called your PAR (Preferred Access Road)
which MUST be on both Intra & Inter roads.
This way a bottleneck scenario will be
created to eliminate fast getaway which is an
element of the crime of kidnapping.

D. Lockdown Mechanism Both Intra & Inter

A system to prevent getting in & going out
when there is a Threat Presence Situation
(TPS). A lockdown mechanism is a system
used to prevent persons getting in or going
out from a given location when the need
arises such as during the commission of a
crime (TPS). In this case, the community
will make it practically impossible for
criminal to get out after committing an
offence also it makes it very difficult for
criminals to come into a location where they
are prohibited from operating.

E. Zonal Alarm Sounders ZAS:

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 This is an audible alarm sounder to alert the
community when the need arises. (Two
rhythms, one for Stranger-Alarm & one for
Demobilization Action-Alarm). The created
Security Zones MUST provide Alarm Sounders
having two types of rhythm. Of these two rhythms,
one shall be designated Stranger Alarm while the
other shall be designated Demobilization Action
Alarm.

Once suspicious strangers are identified within any

Security Zone, the Stranger Alarm is sounded to
alert the community members to put them in
Condition Yellow. When a crime action is going on,
the Demobilization Alarm is sounded to put the
community in condition Red and to activate the
lockdown mechanism.

F. Security Post (SP):

Every zone in all the communities MUST have a
security post at the entrance of the zone. This
security post is the operational base of the local
security operatives of the zone.

G. Alpha Base (AB):

The Alpha Base is the communication hub of the
local government located at the LGA headquarters
also housing the radio repeater station.

H. Informed Road Mastery:

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 There MUST be a mastering of the following roads:

1. Link roads with other states,

2. All notorious community & L.G.A. roads,
3. Entire L.G.A. main & link roads, and
4. All community main & link roads.

Working Principle Of TCSS Explained:

A. Intelligence Gathering:
There must be in place, a solid intelligence
gathering mechanism snooping for information
around the community and its zones. The
information must relate to the threat, vulnerabilities
and the risks that the community might be exposed
to.

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B. Physical Protection Planning:
A Community security survey must be conducted.
o Your survey and assessment of the community
to identify risks and vulnerabilities must yield
sufficient information on which to base a
comprehensive physical protection program.
o Your survey and assessment must identify
vulnerable people, property and assets.

This is when we plan what protective measures to

apply, deciding on how many zones and overall
equipment deployment within the community and
its zones. At this stage, we decide which roads are
going to be the PARs within the community and
the zones.

The physical protection plan must further cover the

following:

• The social, economic, environmental, and

topographical factors that condition the
physical protection of the community.
• The potential threats to the community.
• The human, technical and organisational
means available to face the potential threats.
• The physical protection actions planned for
contingencies and emergencies.
C. Physical Security Measures:
In terms of physical security measures, there are
major measures in place as follows:

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  The Preferred Access Road (PAR) which creates
serious constriction and hardening in and
around the community by restricting egress
and ingress at certain times of the night. This
way a bottleneck scenario will be created to
eliminate fast getaway.
 Lockdown Barriers on both the Intra & Inter
roads. It prevents getting in & going out when
there is a Threat Presence Situation (TPS).
 Zonal Alarm Sounders ZAS which is an audible
alarm sounder to alert the community when
the need arises. (Two rhythms, one for
Stranger-Alarm & one for Demobilization
Action-Alarm).
 Security Post (SP) – This creates visible
presence and is present in every zone in all the
communities. This security post is the
operational base of the local security operatives
of the zone.
 Alpha Base (AB) – like the security post, it also
creates visible presence of security. It is the
communication hub of the local government.

D. Physical Protection Procedures:

 When a security incidence occurs, the members
of the community will quickly inform the
nearest Security Post (SP) of the occurrence.
 Based on what the occurrence is, the Security
Post will sound an alarm – either Stranger
Alarm or a Demobilization Action Alarm.

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 If it is a Demobilization Action Alarm, that
would mean that there is a Threat Presence
Situation (TPS), as such the community
members will move to the barrier points
located on the PARs to effect a Criminal
Demobilization Actions/Lockdown (LD)
situation under the supervision of the local
security operatives.
 The security post (SP), will then callout to
other security posts and the Alpha Base (AB)
and inform of the said incidence. The Alpha
bases will ensure that other Security Posts are
put on full alert and that the Police & other
security agencies are informed for support
coverage.

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Community Leadership Must Be Encouraged To
Do The Following:

1. To Deal With Community Crime Catalysts:

It is a well-known truth that substances such as
hard drugs and their like are catalysts for crime.
Making laws against the sale of hard drugs such as
Indian Hemp, with such penalties as forfeiture of
landed properties to the community and handing
such perpetrators over to NDLEA.

2. To Ban Brothels & Harlot–Houses:

Making laws prohibiting the operation of Brothel
or Harlot-Houses and closing-down every one
that operates in that locality will make the
community safer as these places house criminals.

3. To Ban Sales & Consumption Of Illicit Gin:

Making laws banning the sale and consumption of
illicit gin in your domains and enforcing it to the
letter.

4. Cold Shoulder Treatment (CST):

The community should practice ostracizing of
families that are known for criminal activities (Cold
Shoulder Treatment (CST).

5. Community Black-Book (CBB):

The community should keep a Community Black-
Book where names of offenders are kept. This

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 CBB MUST be constantly reviewed at gatherings to
remind people of its existence and those whose
names appear in it. An offender is eligible to have
his name removed if such offender has stayed for 4
years without any record of offence from such
offender. The offender will apply for such removal
and his application will be tabled before a
community meeting.

6. Stop & Search On PAR:

Community Security Operatives or vigilante should
be allowed with the permission of the Nigerian
Police, to conduct stop & search of vehicles after a
predetermined time on your Preferred Access
Road (PAR) Intra & Inter.

7. Frequent Unscheduled Raids:

Community Security Operatives should conduct
frequent unscheduled raids on big isolated bushes
and empty uncompleted buildings within the
community.

8. Youths Engagement:
Keep your youths busy by creating such activities
as wrestling and football competitions to starts
from beginning of the year and ends with the end
of year. Let the community able sons and
daughters sponsor and donate trophies for this.

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TCSS / CDA Equipment Profile:

1. Lockdown Barrier

2. Alarm Sounder

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3. Hand Held Radios:

One visible challenge would have been how to charge

the batteries of the hand held radios, so we devised a
means of having a charging center or point where a
small generator would charge some batteries overnight
and they will be circulated to all security posts while the
spent batteries will be retrieved for charging. This
vicious circle will last forever.

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