ABU Zaria refutes an AI-generated video falsely claiming it was involved in nuclear weapons development, affirming its peaceful research mission.
Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria, has strongly refuted claims circulating in an AI-generated video that the institution was involved in developing a nuclear weapon or device for Nigeria.
The university described the video as a deliberate act of misinformation by “unscrupulous individuals” aimed at tarnishing its reputation and misleading the public about Nigeria’s nuclear activities.
The ABU nuclear allegations originated from a widely shared video that falsely asserted that the institution played a secret role in enriching weapons-grade uranium in the 1980s.
It further claimed that Nigerian scientists at ABU constructed sophisticated centrifuges obtained from Pakistan’s AQ Khan network and were close to producing a nuclear bomb by 1987.
In a statement released by Auwalu Umar, Director of Public Affairs, Office of the Vice-Chancellor, the university dismissed the claims as baseless and historically inaccurate.
The statement clarified that during the 1980s, most of the scientists at ABU’s Centre for Energy Research and Training (CERT) were still undergoing training abroad and had not yet returned to the country.
Therefore, it was impossible for trainee scientists to have engaged in uranium enrichment or any form of weapons-related nuclear research.
According to Umar, “By 1987, the Centre for Energy Research and Training (CERT) had no nuclear facility in operation except for a 14 MeV Neutron Generator, which became operational only in 1988. The major nuclear research project, Nigeria Research Reactor-1 (NIRR-1), did not begin until 1996 under the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Technical Cooperation Programme and was officially commissioned in 2004.”
He further explained that neither Nigeria nor ABU has ever had any connection with the AQ Khan network or received any centrifuge equipment from Pakistan, contrary to the video’s fabricated claims.
“These are deliberate distortions of Nigeria’s peaceful nuclear agenda,” Umar stated.
Tracing the history of Nigeria’s nuclear development, the spokesperson said the nation’s interest in atomic research began in 1960 after France conducted a nuclear test in the Sahara Desert.
Concerned about possible radiation effects, the Federal Government established the Federal Radiation Protection Service (FRPS) at the University of Ibadan to monitor environmental impacts.
Nigeria subsequently joined the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in 1964, signaling its commitment to the peaceful use of nuclear science and technology.
In 1976, the Murtala-Obasanjo administration designated Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, and Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, as centres to drive the country’s nuclear energy programme strictly for peaceful applications, consistent with IAEA’s objectives.
Nigeria had already signed the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) in 1968, committing itself to the non-development of nuclear weapons.
Following this policy direction, ABU established the Centre for Energy Research and Training (CERT) through Statute 29 of its governing laws, in line with the creation of the Nigeria Atomic Energy Commission (NAEC) under Decree 46 of 1976.
The centre was mandated to promote nuclear education, research, and technology in partnership with international institutions.
Through collaborations with the IAEA and partners from the United States, Russia, and China, ABU established the Nigeria Research Reactor-1 (NIRR-1) in 2004.
The 34-kilowatt reactor was initially powered by Highly Enriched Uranium (HEU) but was successfully converted to Low Enriched Uranium (LEU) in 2018 under the Global Threat Reduction Initiative (GTRI) — an international programme to prevent the misuse of nuclear materials.
Umar emphasized that all nuclear activities conducted at ABU have always been transparent and open to oversight by international agencies, including the UN nuclear watchdog.
“The LEU reactor core currently in use was designed locally by Nigerian scientists and manufactured in China, clearly showing that the process was fully regulated, peaceful, and internationally approved,” he added.
He stressed that Nigeria does not own or operate any uranium enrichment or fuel fabrication plant anywhere within its borders, a fact that contradicts the allegations made in the misleading video.
Nigeria’s nuclear policy, he noted, aligns fully with the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and the Pelindaba Treaty, which came into force in 2009. Both agreements prohibit the development or acquisition of nuclear weapons and related technologies by African states.
Highlighting ABU’s longstanding commitment to peace and progress, Umar recalled that the university’s founder, the late Sir Ahmadu Bello, Sardauna of Sokoto, visited the Museum of Atomic Energy at Oak Ridge National Laboratory in the United States on July 22, 1960 — two years before establishing the university.
The visit, he said, reflected Bello’s visionary belief in the potential of nuclear science for peaceful national development.
“From its inception, ABU has upheld the ideals of scientific innovation for humanity’s advancement,” Umar noted.
“The establishment of the Centre for Energy Research and Training was a direct manifestation of that vision — to harness nuclear science responsibly for health, agriculture, power, and industrial development, never for weapons.”
He concluded by urging the public to disregard the ABU nuclear allegations, describing them as a product of generative AI manipulation intended to misinform and sow distrust.
He reaffirmed that ABU’s research continues to focus on peaceful applications of nuclear energy in medicine, water resources, and agriculture under strict international supervision.
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