For decades, African nations have had to purchase their defense systems from foreign superpowers, leaving them dependent on external suppliers to protect their borders and resources. A young Nigerian startup is now aiming to break this cycle by building the continent's first major homegrown defense drone manufacturer.
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. Unlike many regional technology companies that simply assemble imported parts, Terra builds its own software, airframes, propellers, and lithium-ion batteries in Abuja, Nigeria, and Accra, Ghana. More than 70 percent of their manufacturing inputs are sourced locally.
The company's systems already protect an estimated $11 billion worth of strategic infrastructure, including oil refineries, gold mines, and power plants across eight African countries and Canada.
"Coastal states in West Africa are focused on maritime surveillance because of piracy and illegal fishing," Chief Executive Nathan Nwachuku told Al Jazeera. Other nations facing insurgencies require constant aerial surveillance or protection for critical energy pipelines.
This local approach has attracted significant attention from international investors. Terra recently raised $34 million in a seed funding round led by major U.S. venture capital firms, including 8VC, Lux Capital, and Valor Equity Partners. These firms are well-known in the global defense tech industry for backing companies like SpaceX and Anduril. The round closed in less than two weeks, highlighting strong investor confidence in Africa's emerging defense sector.
The demand for localized defense technology comes at a critical time. In the Sahel region, inexpensive commercial drones have increasingly been weaponized by insurgent groups like the al-Qaeda-linked JNIM, which has carried out more than 100 drone attacks since 2023. To counter this threat, Terra developed the Kama interceptor, a specialized drone that can fly up to 300 kilometers per hour to disable hostile unmanned aircraft.
However, some experts warn that local manufacturing is only part of the solution to achieving true defense sovereignty. Janice Greaver, director at the Pan African Sustainable, Innovation and Development Associates, pointed out that local sourcing does not guarantee accountability. She cautioned that without proper civil society oversight, countries might simply exchange a dependency on foreign suppliers for a dependency on unaccountable domestic corporations.
Despite these concerns, Terra is moving forward with ambitious expansion plans. The startup is currently constructing a second production facility in Ghana, which they expect to become Africa’s largest drone manufacturing hub, with a capacity of 50,000 units per year by 2028.