The Federal Government has announced plans to strengthen the Safe Schools Initiative by deepening collaboration with security agencies to better protect students, teachers and school facilities across Nigeria.
The move comes amid growing concerns over recurring attacks on schools, kidnappings and insecurity affecting educational institutions nationwide.
Speaking after a meeting with the Senate Ad-hoc Committee on the Safe Schools Initiative on Friday, the Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, said the Federal Ministry of Education is working with key security agencies to develop a comprehensive framework that will improve safety in schools across the country’s 774 local government areas.
“We are collaborating closely with the Office of the National Security Adviser, the Department of State Services, the Armed Forces, the Nigeria Police and other security agencies to develop a comprehensive Safe Schools framework. School safety cannot be handled in a fragmented manner,” Alausa said.
The minister explained that the initiative goes beyond providing physical security, noting that it also includes perimeter fencing, solar-powered lighting, water and sanitation facilities, recruitment of school security personnel, deployment of technology and effective monitoring systems.
“Safe Schools is much broader than physical security… There are many components of the Safe Schools Initiative, and they require a central command-and-control structure,” he added.
Alausa also revealed that the ministry has established a dedicated Safe Schools Department and requested that the management of the initiative’s funds be transferred from the Federal Ministry of Finance to the Federal Ministry of Education, arguing that the education ministry is better positioned to coordinate implementation.
According to him, previous disbursements under the programme were mainly targeted at the Nigeria Police Force and the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) through the Ministry of Finance.
Responding to the proposal, the Minister of Finance, Mr. Taiwo Oyedele, said the priority should be ensuring that adequate funding is available and released on time, regardless of which ministry manages the funds.
“What is even the priority for us is how do we ensure that the funding is adequate and the monies are released on time so that some of these crimes can be prevented rather than us trying to do damage control,” Oyedele said.
The Senate Ad-hoc Committee continues to engage relevant ministries and agencies as part of efforts to strengthen the Safe Schools Initiative and improve security in schools nationwide.
