The Genesis:

A coalition of Nigerian business leaders, working with the UN Special Envoy for Education Gordon Brown, the Global Business Coalition for Education and A World at School launched, a “Safe Schools Initiative” at the World Economic Forum in Nigeria in response to the growing number of attacks on the right to education, including the kidnapping of more than 200 girls last month. As part of the growing movement to “Bring Back Our Girls,” the initiative is an initial $10 million fund, challenging matching investments by the government, to promote schools as safe spaces.

Starting with 500 schools as the pilots in northern states, the “Safe Schools Initiative” will focus on school and community interventions, with special measures for the most at-risk and vulnerable children. The initiative will build community security groups to promote safe zones for education, consisting of teachers, parents, police, community leaders and young people themselves.

In the longer-term, the initiative will focus on bolstering the physical protection of schools, providing school guards and police in partnership with Nigerian authorities, training staff as school safety officers, providing communications tools and school counsellors. The initiative will also work to help schools create school security plans and work with the government to develop a rapid response system so that even when faced with attacks, response units are set up to quickly repair or rebuild, and destroyed education material is replaced.

Gordon Brown, UN Special Envoy for Global Education, is set to meet with President Jonathan this week and will take a plan from the international community to partner with Nigeria for the largest school expansion in the country’s history to get out-of-school children into school. A petition with already over 400,000 signatures will be delivered later this week to President Jonathan showing international support for creating safe schools in Nigeria so that every girl and boy is able to go to school and learn.

The Global Business Coalition for Education will solicit more corporate partners to support the expansion of safe schools in Nigeria to protect the right of children and young people to go to school and learn.

“One of Africa’s greatest assets is its young people who will drive its future development. The Safe Schools Initiative can help Africa unlock their potential and in this light, could be seen as a crucial intervention,” said Saadia Zahidi, Head of Gender Parity and Skills Initiatives, World Economic Forum.

“Inclusive growth means building for the future. The Safe Schools Initiative is a public-private partnership that will help protect our greatest asset, our young people, by giving them a safe environment where they can acquire the skills they need to realize their full potential,” said Nduka Obaigbena, Chairman & Editor-in-Chief, ThisDay Media and President, Newspapers Association of Nigeria.

Statement by Gordon Brown, UN Special Envoy for Global Education


The Present:

Attacking schools and abducting school children has now become a "regular" pastime of terrorist, bandits, kidnappers et cetera. This menace is growing daily and getting worse every minute.

The question demanding an answer is what happened to the SSI?

What are its scorecard?

Where are the funds gathered?

How were they utilised?

Where are the 500 schools secured and adopted?

(to be continued)

From Premium Times:

Timeline: Nigeria’s alarming trend of mass abduction of school children

The breakdown of security in the country has led to a surge in kidnapping for ransom.

The abduction of 317 schoolgirls at Government Girls Secondary School, Jangebe in Zamfara State on Friday is the latest episode of a phenomenon that is fast becoming commonplace in Nigeria.

The breakdown of security in the North-west and North-central regions of the country has led to a surge in kidnapping and banditry and added to the over a decade-old insurgency in the North-east.

Kidnapping is one of the most pervasive and intractable violent crimes in the country, experienced in less dramatic forms in the southern part of the country.

Nigeria has one of the world’s highest rates of kidnap-for-ransom cases globally. Over the years, this has continued in spite of the government vow to address the situation.

Different bands of outlaws are responsible for the menace in the North-west and North-central, unlike in the North-east where Boko Haram claimed responsibility for the two incidents in Chibok and Dapchi some years ago.

Timeline

Here are some of the cases of mass kidnapping of schoolchildren in Nigeria in the last seven years and the events around them .

April 14, 2014: Boko Haram terrorists abducted hundreds of schoolgirls from their dormitories in Chibok, Borno State at a time the students were writing their final year exams. About 57 of the girls manage to escape at different times while on transit with their abductors.

April 16, 2014: The military said soldiers had rescued over 100 of the Chibok schoolgirls but quickly withdrew the claim after the school principal, Asabe Kwambura, and many of the parents of the abducted girls refuted it.

May 12, 2014: Boko Haram releases the first video of the abducted girls, a development which confirmed that the girls were actually in the custody of the Abubakar Shekau-led terror group. Mr Shekau in the video threatened to marry the girls off or use them as part of his war booty.

May 20, 2014: The Borno State government set up a N150 million special fund for the rehabilitation of the 57 Chibok girls who had escaped.

October 16, 2014: The former Chief of Defence Staff, Alex Badeh, an air vice-marshal, said the federal government had reached a ceasefire deal with leaders of Boko Haram and that the 216 girls in their captivity would soon be released. But Boko Haram leaders quickly denied the claim.

November 2, 2014: Boko Haram leader, Mr Shekau, released a video in which he declares that all the 216 girls in his custody had been converted to Islam and married off. He also denied ever negotiating with the federal government concerning the girls.

March 24, 2015: A woman who escaped from Boko Haram captivity said some of the Chibok girls were being held somewhere near Gwoza and that two of the girls had been killed during a military air strike on one of the terrorists’ locations.

May 29, 2015: President Muhammadu Buhari, in his inaugural speech, promised to end the Boko Haram insurgency and rescue the Chibok schoolgirls “within six months”.

August 29, 2015: President Buhari meets 90 of the parents of the abducted Chibok girls during which he restated his promise to rescue the girls.

November 30, 2015: President Buhari during a media chat said there is no “credible information” on the whereabouts of the Chibok girls, dashing hopes in their release.

May 18, 2016: One of the abducted Chibok girls, Amina Ali Nkeki, was found with her baby and a man she identified as her husband.

October 13, 2016: Boko Haram releases 21 Chibok girls following negotiations.

January 5, 2017: Another Chibok girl, Rakiya Abubakar, is found with her baby, which brought to 23 the number of the abducted girls to have regained freedom.

May 2017: Another 82 girls are released in exchange for five Boko Haram commanders. Later that month, Boko Haram released a video in which a woman in a black veil claiming to be one of the Chibok girls brandishes a gun and proclaims loyalty to the group.

December 30, 2020: The Chibok community demands the release of the remaining schoolgirls in Boko Haram captivity.

February 18, 2018: Nearly 110 schoolgirls are kidnapped by Boko Haram terrorists in Dapchi town of Yobe State.

February 20, 2018: The Nigerian government confirms that 110 schoolgirls are missing.

February 21, 2018: The Yobe State government announces the rescue of some of the girls and says they are with the army.

February 22, 2018: The Yobe government retracts the statement and apologises for misleading the public, saying “No girl was rescued.”

February 23, 2018: President Buhari calls the abduction of schoolgirls in Dapchi a ‘national disaster’.

February 25, 2018: The Nigerian Air force announces the deployment of aircraft and additional personnel for search and rescue missions.

March 9, 2018: Women hold a protest in Abuja three weeks after the abduction of the Dapchi schoolgirls.

March 12, 2018: President Muhammadu Buhari announces plan to negotiate the girl’s release, rather than use military force.

March 14, 2018: Mr Buhari makes first visit to Dapchi, assuring parents of the missing schoolgirls that the government will rescue the students.

March 20, 2018: Amnesty International claims Nigerian Army ignored repeated warnings of an attack on Dapchi town, hours before the abductions.

March 21, 2018: The Nigerian government announces that 104 of the 110 schoolgirls have been freed.

December 11, 2020: Suspected gunmen attack Government Boys Science Secondary School in Kankara Local Government Area of Katsina State and abduct over 300 students.

December 12, 2020: the Katsina State government shuts all public schools.

December 12, 2020: Mr Buhari speaks on the abductions.

December 16, 2020: Parents and guardians of the abducted schoolboys in Kankara said they were disappointed with President Buhari and Governor Aminu Masari, who they said had failed to ensure security in the state.

December 17, 2020: The abducted Kankara students regain freedom.

December 18, 2020: The United States (U.S.) condemns the abduction of students, urging the Nigerian government to hold kidnappers accountable.

February 17, 2021: Suspected bandits abduct 27 students and 15 others at Government Science School, Kagara in Niger State.

February 17, 2021: The federal government promises to take ‘political and military’ steps to secure the release of college students.

February 17, 2021: The Nigerian Army said its troops were in ‘hot chase’ of the bandits behind the abductions in Kagara.

February 19, 2021: The governor of Niger State said negotiation for the release of the abducted persons is at the final stage.

February 24, 2021: Kidnappers demanded ransom from victims’ parents and warn that the students may starve to death if the ransom is not paid quickly.

February 25, 2021: The governor of Niger State said the Nigerian government is not ‘helping’ in the rescue of the abducted persons.

February 26, 2021: Bandits kidnap 317 female students of Government Girls Secondary School Jangebe, Zamfara State in an early morning raid on their school.

February 26, 2021: The Zamfara State government confirms the abduction.

February 26, 2021: The police confirm that 317 schoolgirls were abducted in Jangebe.

The Claims:

These are the claims by Gordon Brown:


NIGERIA SAFE SCHOOLS

The Safe Schools initiative, catalysed by an initial investment by Global Business Coalition for Education corporate leaders, has mobilised more than $30 million for the protection of schools

International support has come from the United States, the United Kingdom, Norway, Germany and the African Development Bank

One million Nigerians are internally displaced, 157,000 refugees in Niger, 40,000 in Cameroon and 17,000 in Chad

Estimation: six million of the 11 million Nigerians who live in the three states under State of emergency have been affected by the insecurity, with four million in Borno State alon

By end of 2014, a total of 338 schools had been destroyed, at least 196 teachers and more than 314 students killed and more than 276 abducted (figures from UNICEF)

The Safe Schools Initiative has moved forward with three programmes:

Transfer Programme: This transfers students from high-risk areas in the three states (Adamawa, Borno & Yobe) that have been the most affected by the Boko Haram insurgency and are currently on the emergency rule by the federal government. These states have a high risk of attacks on schools. Students are transferred to one of 43 federal community colleges across the northern part of the country. The programme started with 2400 students – 800 from each state.

Safe Schools Model: This model rebuilds schools to make them more secure and safer for children and teachers. The Nigerian Army Engineer Corps assessed schools in each state to determine what is needed to make the schools secure to deliver quality education. Scanners, solar power and risk profiles for schools have been part of these efforts.

Strengthening the School-based Management Committees (the link between the school, community and first responders) to determine who to call when an alarm is sounded.

Considering issues around emergency planning, emergency management and evacuation plans

Education provision for internally displaced individuals: UNICEF has been leading and working with government to provide education to IDPs living in camps. This includes the procurement of school-in-a-box kits and 35,000 schoolbags for displaced students to be distributed in the camps. Activities to have a double-shift schedule and multi-grade patterns are underway.

Source: https://protectingeducation.org/news/un-education-envoy-gordon-brown-demands-urgent-action-on-safe-schools/

The Safe Schools Initiative was launched to make sure that such attacks do not happen in the future and the fund currently stands at $22.5million. Yesterday Nigerian Finance Minister Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala announced the fund target was $100million.