The Federal Government has said it is preparing to launch a National Plan for Safe Schools to forestall attacks on schools across the country.
The Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs. Zainab Ahmed, announced this yesterday in Abuja at a “high-level summit on safeguarding our schools”.
The national plan, she said, “is expected to be launched before the end of the third quarter of 2022, and will clearly outline how Nigeria intends to protect her schools and other learning places so that our children can once again return to learning in a safer and more secured environment”.
The minister said her ministry had established a committee with members drawn from relevant Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), including the Federal Ministry of Education, as well as the military and other security agencies.
“The committee has been working to collate inputs from relevant MDAs and to develop a National Plan for Financing Safe Schools.” she said.
Mrs. Ahmed stressed that “the plan will incorporate state level plans, as well as Federal Government sectoral plans, with an emphasis on ensuring adequate budgetary allocation in order to create a safe learning environment for teaching, learning, and restoring confidence in the education system”.
According to her, “consultations are currently underway with states, local governments and other critical agencies of government, and the committee is also working to identify the most transparent, effective and accountable ways of mobilising and deploying resources”.
She added: “The goal is to develop a robust collaborative cost that prioritises plans, which would adopt the whole society approach to safe schools.”
Mrs. Ahmed said national plan would be implemented in phases, starting with Most-at-Risk States, Local Governments and Schools, Host Communities.
Over the past several years, Nigeria has faced major security challenges, including attacks on schools and other learning places.
The attacks have led to the closure of schools in impacted and most-at-risk communities.
In 2014, after the kidnap of the Chibok girls, and as part of efforts to tackle these crises, the Federal Government, in collaboration with the British Government, launched the Safe School Initiative (SSI), which focuses on enabling children affected by conflict and insecurity to continue with their education unhindered.