Security experts have called for a comprehensive overhaul of Nigeria’s Safe Schools Initiative following the alarming abduction of more than 2,000 students and teachers across the country since the programme was introduced over a decade ago.
The renewed call comes amid growing concerns over the effectiveness of measures put in place to protect educational institutions, despite the allocation of billions of naira to improve school safety and strengthen security responses nationwide.
Established in 2014 and implemented from 2015, the Safe Schools Initiative was designed to provide a secure learning environment for students, teachers and education workers in the wake of increasing attacks on schools, particularly in conflict-prone regions.
However, media records indicate that the initiative has struggled to achieve its core objective, as schools continue to be targets of mass abductions and violent attacks by bandits and terrorist groups.
While only isolated incidents were reported between 2015 and 2017, the security situation deteriorated significantly in February 2018 when 110 schoolgirls were abducted from the Government Girls’ Science and Technical College, Dapchi, Yobe State, by fighters of the Islamic State West Africa Province.
Although most of the Dapchi schoolgirls were eventually released, Leah Sharibu remained in captivity after she reportedly refused to renounce her Christian faith, drawing international attention and condemnation.
Two years later, in December 2020, 303 students of Government Science Secondary School, Kankara, Katsina State, were kidnapped by armed bandits. Around the same period, 80 pupils of an Islamiyya school were also abducted.
The wave of attacks intensified between February and March 2021, with separate incidents recorded in Zamfara, Niger and Kaduna states. Among them were the abduction of 279 schoolgirls from Jangebe in Zamfara State, the kidnapping of 27 students and staff members from Government Science College, Kagara, Niger State, and the seizure of 39 students from the Federal College of Forestry Mechanisation, Afaka, Kaduna State.
Subsequent attacks further exposed the vulnerability of educational institutions. In May 2021, approximately 150 students were abducted in Niger State, while in June of the same year, 96 students and eight teachers were kidnapped in Kebbi State. The following month, 153 students and staff members of Bethel Baptist High School in Kaduna State were taken hostage.
In August 2021, 15 students and four staff members of Zamfara College of Agriculture were abducted, while another 73 students were kidnapped in Zamfara in September of the same year.
More recent incidents have continued to raise concerns. In September 2023, 24 students were abducted in Zamfara State, while 20 others were kidnapped in Kano State. Similar attacks were also reported in Nasarawa State in October 2023.
In March 2024, gunmen invaded Government Secondary School, Kuriga, Kaduna State, abducting 287 students in one of the country’s largest school kidnapping incidents in recent years. The trend persisted into 2026, with seven students reportedly kidnapped in Zamfara State in June, even as previous cases in Oyo and Borno states remain unresolved.
A review of the National Plan on Safe Schools Financing for 2023–2026 revealed that a total of N82.9 billion was allocated to security agencies for the procurement of arms and ammunition, acquisition of operational equipment, personnel training and other security-related activities.
The financing framework showed that the Federal Government was expected to contribute N119.83 billion, while state governments would provide N24.93 billion towards implementing the initiative.
According to the year-by-year breakdown, N32.59 billion was earmarked for the programme in 2023, N36.99 billion in 2024, N37.16 billion in 2025, and N38.03 billion in 2026.
The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps was allocated N5 billion in 2023, N5.25 billion in 2024, N5.51 billion in 2025, and N5.79 billion in 2026 under the plan.
Similarly, the Defence Headquarters received N4 billion in 2023, N200 million in 2024, N4.41 billion in 2025 and N4.63 billion in 2026.
The Nigeria Police Force was allocated N5.73 billion in 2023, N6.01 billion in 2024, N6.31 billion in 2025 and N6.63 billion in 2026, while the Department of State Services received N5.29 billion, N5.55 billion, N5.83 billion and N6.78 billion respectively during the same period.
Reacting to the persistent attacks, former Assistant Inspector-General of Police, Wilson Inalegwu (retd.), argued that intelligence gathering remained the most effective strategy for preventing school abductions.
“The only thing that can solve this problem is intelligence,” he said. “That is what Colombia did. They have intelligence coordination across agencies, including military intelligence, the police and civil defence.”
He called for stronger state-level security structures that would work closely with federal agencies to ensure prompt information sharing and coordinated responses to threats.
“The government must take the issue of security coordination seriously. Each state security committee should function like a decentralised national security council,” Inalegwu stated.
The retired police officer also advocated the establishment of integrated intelligence centres involving traditional rulers, local authorities and security agencies.
“If we have people bringing information together in real time, attacks can be detected and prevented before they happen,” he added.
He further emphasised the importance of community engagement and intelligence sharing, noting that effective collaboration between citizens and security operatives could significantly reduce the incidence of mass abductions.
Also speaking on the development, retired Commissioner of Police, Lawrence Alobi, called for a comprehensive review of the country’s security architecture, stressing that safeguarding schools should not be the responsibility of a single institution.
“Security is a collective responsibility of every Nigerian. Section 14(2)(b) of the Constitution makes security and welfare the primary purpose of government, while Section 24 places a responsibility on citizens to assist security agencies in maintaining law and order,” he said.
According to Alobi, the vast number of educational institutions scattered across the country makes it practically impossible for one agency to provide adequate security coverage.
“There are too many schools. When you consider primary, secondary and tertiary institutions spread across the country, you begin to ask whether any one agency has the manpower to cover all of them effectively,” he stated.
He therefore advocated a multi-agency approach involving the police, military, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, intelligence agencies and local communities.
“What is important is not which agency gets the credit, but ensuring that schools are safe and children can learn without fear,” Alobi said.
As Nigeria continues to grapple with the challenge of insecurity, stakeholders insist that protecting schools must remain a national priority, warning that failure to address the recurring attacks could undermine educational development, increase school dropout rates and erode public confidence in the country’s ability to guarantee the safety of its children.
