The Zamfara State Ministry of Education said yesterday in Gusau that it has reopened 45 out of the 75 schools it closed down because of insecurity.

The Permanent Secretary in the ministry, Alhaji Kabiru Attahiru stated this when he received members of the state’s Technical Team on Education in Emergencies (EiE) who visited him yesterday in his office.

In September 2021, because of the abduction of students of Government Day Secondary School, Kaya in Maradun Local Government Area, the state government shut the schools.

“While reopening the schools, we categorised them into three groups – green, yellow and red.

“The green category were schools located in areas without security threats, the yellow group is for schools located in areas with minimal insecurity threat, while the red ones were schools in those areas with high-security risks,” Attahiru said.

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He said all the 75 schools fell into the red group at the time of their closure as it was dangerous to allow them to remain open.

“I am happy that we reopened 45 out of the 75 schools, while only 30 of the schools remain shut,” he said.

The permanent secretary commended the EiE team for the visit. He assured them of the ministry’s commitment to continue to partner with all stakeholders to promote the education sector.

The Team Leader, Hajiya Sa’adatu Abdu-Gusau, said the visit was to advocate for the establishment of the Education in Emergencies Working Group (EiEWG).

Abdu-Gusau said the visit was also part of activities to commemorate the International Day of the Girl-child.

The team’s Deputy Leader, Dr Ahmad Hashim said the group was formed by the Development Research and Project Centre (DRPC).

He appealed to the ministry for support to ensure that the objectives of the EiEWG were achieved.

This, he said, could be done by implementing the national policy on safety, security and violence-free schools and safe school activities in Zamfara State.