The Federal Government is expanding its Safe Schools intervention beyond school premises to vulnerable host communities, border areas and riverine settlements as part of efforts to strengthen security around learning centres across the country.
The National Coordinator of the Safe School Initiative Nigeria, Halima Ibrahim, disclosed this in Jos, Plateau State, on Tuesday while speaking at the fourth National Camp of Man O’ War Nigeria at the Citizenship and Leadership Training Centre, Mountain School, Shere Hills.
Ibrahim said the expanded approach was aimed at addressing school security holistically by strengthening the resilience of communities where schools are located.
She stressed that the safety of schools could not be guaranteed without securing the wider environment, noting that the initiative involved collaboration among several government agencies.
According to her, the Federal Government launched the Safe Schools Plan in 2022, while full implementation of the National Plan on Financing Safe Schools began in 2023.
“One of the objectives is to cascade it down to the schools, state and community levels to strengthen the resilience of the entire host community because it is our collective responsibility,” she said.
Ibrahim said schools and their host communities were currently being mapped, with the initial exercise in Plateau State covering the three senatorial districts.
She explained that the mapping was intended to strengthen entire communities rather than focus solely on school premises, as perpetrators could move through or operate within surrounding communities before attacking schools.
“We are mapping out schools across the three senatorial zones to build the resilience of the entire host community, not just the school community,” she said.
The National Coordinator said the Federal Government was also identifying vulnerable border and riverine communities for support under the transition plan for the Safe Schools programme.
She noted that children in some riverine areas faced additional risks because they had to travel through waterways to access education, making the communities important targets for the intervention.
Ibrahim added that the government would collaborate with the Nigeria Immigration Service and other relevant agencies to improve security in vulnerable communities and strengthen protection around schools.
The initiative, she said, was based on a multi-agency approach involving government institutions and other stakeholders working together to improve school safety across the country.
