The Federal Government has announced strengthened measures to protect students nationwide, as the Education Ministry and the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) step up collaboration to tackle school abductions and enhance safety.
Tunji Alausa, Minister of Education, disclosed during an official visit to the Commandant-General of the NSCDC, Ahmed Audi, on Wednesday in Abuja. He stressed that the government has zero tolerance for attacks on schools and is committed to ensuring children can learn without fear.
“We will move from knee-jerk responses to a continuous security presence, especially in vulnerable schools. Our children must remain safe in school, and this administration is committed to providing the resources and structure required,” Alausa said.
To reinforce security, the ministry is establishing a full-fledged Safe Schools department, which will coordinate national implementation and improve collaboration with the NSCDC. Alausa also revealed plans to introduce technology-driven alert mechanisms, such as panic buttons linked to command centres, for the rapid deployment of security personnel.
The minister further stated that the government is exploring sustainable financing options to ensure continuous funding for school security, independent of budget delays.
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In his response, Ahmed Audi, the NSCDC Commandant-General, highlighted the results of a nationwide vulnerability assessment that revealed more than 60,000 schools out of approximately 81,000 lacked adequate security.
He noted that many schools were porous, without security personnel or fencing, making them vulnerable to attacks.
Audi said the corps has set up specialised female squads and community security structures, which have successfully prevented over 110 security threats against schools nationwide.
“These schools are porous in the sense that there was no presence of security men or no fences in those schools, so that gave us a guide on how to develop our operational strategy in terms of mutual security and safety for the schools.
“And I tell you, in doing that, what we did first was to provide the data and submit the same reports to the Federal Ministry of Education,” he said.
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However, Audi acknowledged funding shortfalls as a major challenge, noting that only a fraction of the required resources had been released for school protection operations. Despite this, he assured the minister of the corps’ commitment to deeper collaboration to guarantee safe learning environments for students across the country.
“The Safe Schools Protection Squad and community engagement initiatives have significantly strengthened intelligence gathering and emergency response,” he added.
