Nigeria launches new school safety guidelines as kidnappings surge

The Federal Government of Nigeria announced revised School-Based Management Committee (SBMC) operational documents that add safety, education in emergencies, climate‑change and gender‑based violence components, and introduce a “safe school” initiative aimed at fencing schools and boosting community participation. The rollout was presented by Universal Basic Education Commission Executive Secretary Aisha Garba in Kano.

The measures address a wave of school abductions that have affected more than 2,000 students and teachers since the Safe Schools programme began in 2015, including the 2018 Dapchi massacre, the 2020 Kankara attack and recent kidnappings in Zamfara, Kano and other northern states through June 2026.

A national financing plan earmarks roughly N82 billion for the Safe Schools programme for 2023‑2026, with billions allocated to the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, police and the Department of State Services for weapons, training and equipment. Security experts and former police officials have called for an intelligence‑driven overhaul of coordination to curb the kidnappings.