Experts urge major reforms in Nigeria’s Safe Schools initiative
Experts are calling for urgent changes to Nigeria’s Safe Schools initiative after a surge in abductions targeting students and teachers. Over 2,000 people have been kidnapped since the programme began, with high-profile incidents continuing despite government interventions. Security specialists like Wilson Inalegwu and Lawrence Alobi stress the need for better intelligence, coordination, and community involvement. Funding allocations for security agencies have increased, but experts say structural reforms are still needed.
What we know
- The Safe Schools initiative was established in 2014 and took effect in 2015 to protect students and teachers.
- Major abductions include the 2018 Dapchi schoolgirls kidnapping, the December 2020 Kankara abduction, and mass kidnappings in Zamfara, Niger, Kaduna, Kebbi, and other states between February 2021 and September 2023.
- In March 2024, 287 students were abducted in Kaduna, and in June 2026, seven students were kidnapped in Zamfara.
- A national plan for 2023 – 2026 allocated N82.9bn to security agencies, with year-by-year breakdowns for the police, Defence Headquarters, NSCDC, and DSS.
- Experts argue that only intelligence-driven, multi-agency collaboration and community involvement can effectively address the ongoing threat to schools.
