Terrorism remains one of the most pressing security challenges confronting Nigeria, with far reaching consequences for national stability, economic development, and social cohesion. Despite sustained military operations, legislative reforms, and regional cooperation, terrorist activities continue to persist, particularly in the North East and other vulnerable regions. This paper examines the major challenges undermining Nigeria’s efforts to combat terrorism, arguing that the problem extends beyond the use of force to include deep structural, institutional, and governance deficits. Using a qualitative and analytical approach, the paper interrogates political, security, socio economic, and institutional factors that constrain effective counterterrorism. It identifies the politicization of the war on terror, inadequate skilled manpower, proliferation of small arms, religious and cultural complexities, weak law enforcement institutions, poverty, unemployment, corruption, poor intelligence coordination, and fund mismanagement as critical obstacles. These challenges interact in ways that weaken state capacity, reduce public trust, and enable terrorist groups to adapt, recruit, and sustain their operations. The paper further demonstrates that Nigeria’s counterterrorism responses have often been reactive rather than preventive, with excessive emphasis on military solutions at the expense of intelligence driven operations, socio economic interventions, and institutional reforms. Weak governance structures and corruption have limited the effective utilization of security resources, while poverty and inequality have created fertile ground for radicalization, especially among unemployed youth. In addition, poor coordination among intelligence and security agencies has undermined early warning systems and rapid response capabilities. The study concludes that combating terrorism in Nigeria requires a holistic and integrated strategy that addresses both security and non-security dimensions of the problem. It emphasizes the need for depoliticized security governance, capacity building for security agencies, strengthened intelligence coordination, effective law enforcement, and inclusive socio-economic development. By highlighting these challenges, the paper contributes to policy and scholarly debates on how Nigeria can design more effective, sustainable, and accountable counterterrorism strategies.