The Federal Government has stepped up efforts to protect schools nationwide, strengthening the Safe Schools Initiative in partnership with the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC).
The Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, stated this during an official visit to the NSCDC Commandant-General, Ahmed Audi, on Wednesday. He also said that the government is exploring sustainable financing to ensure school security remains fully funded.
He reaffirmed the administration’s commitment to keeping children safe, stating, ‘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 further announced that a dedicated Safe Schools department is being established within the Ministry of Education to oversee nationwide implementation and improve collaboration with the NSCDC.
He also said technology-driven systems, including panic buttons linked to command centres, would be introduced for faster emergency response.
The minister confirmed that the NSCDC had been appointed as the lead agency for school protection, replacing fragmented security arrangements.
Commandant-General Audi revealed that more than 60,000 of Nigeria’s 81,000 schools lack adequate security.
‘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.
He added that the corps has deployed specialised female squads and community security structures, which have prevented over 110 security threats.
‘The Safe Schools Protection Squad and community engagement initiatives have significantly strengthened intelligence gathering and emergency response’, Audi said.
The Safe Schools Project was launched in 2014 following the abduction of schoolgirls in Chibok, Borno State. It was introduced by the United Nations Special Envoy for Global Education, Gordon Brown, in collaboration with the Nigerian Global Business Coalition for Education and private-sector leaders.
The programme is coordinated in conjunction with the Office of the National Security Adviser and is designed to create a secure and enabling environment for living, teaching, and learning.
In December 2022, FG launched the National Plan on Financing Safe Schools for 2023–2026, with a proposed investment of N144.8 billion.
Under the plan, the School Protection Squad was established, with command and control centre officers deployed nationwide, alongside the National Safe School Response Coordination Centre to ensure swift responses to attacks on learning facilities. Safe Schools Coordinators were appointed in all 36 states, while Desk Officers were assigned to the country’s 774 local government areas.
Despite these measures, concerns persist over the vulnerability of schools. In December 2025, the Senate launched an investigation into the Safe School project, expressing outrage that schools continued to face attacks, mass kidnappings and deadly raids despite years of funding, policy commitments and donor support.
Amid growing insecurity, the Safe Schools Project recorded a rise in school registrations. Data from the National Safe Schools Response and Coordination Centre showed that registered schools rose from 11,550 in November 2025 to 14,685 by December.
The rise in registrations followed a series of high-profile attacks, including the November 17, 2025, assault on Government Girls Comprehensive Secondary School in Maga, Kebbi State, where 24 students were abducted, and the vice-principal was killed. Four days later, gunmen stormed St Mary’s Catholic School in Papiri, Agwara Local Government Area of Niger State, abducting 303 students and 12 teachers.
Currently, most states have yet to fully implement the FG’s Safe Schools Project.
