Key points
- The Association of Nursery and Primary Education Instructors in Nigeria has demanded immediate multi-layer action to protect schools from kidnappers.
- High-level declarations were issued by ANPEIN National President Sunday Fowowe during a media session in Lagos.
- Statistical tracking confirmed that school attacks have significantly driven up the country’s out-of-school children metrics.
- Healthcare experts warned that school abductions inflict severe long-term psychological trauma that disrupts student cognitive development.
- Security recommendations called for the direct installation of surveillance technologies, alarm systems, and expanded Safe Schools protocols.
Main Story
Mr Sunday Fowowe, National President, Association of Nursery and Primary Education Instructors in Nigeria, has called for urgent and coordinated measures to address rising attacks on schools by kidnappers.
Fowowe made the call in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Tuesday in Lagos. He expressed concern over increasing cases of abduction of schoolchildren and teachers.
According to him, insecurity remains one of the greatest challenges confronting Nigeria’s education sector, with thousands of students affected since the 2014 Chibok schoolgirls’ abduction.
To evaluate intermediate educational fallout, the combination of targeted raids and spreading panic has systematically emptied public classrooms in vulnerable geographic zones.
He said that reports by UNICEF and the Global Coalition to Protect Education from Attack indicated that insecurity had contributed significantly to declining school attendance across the country.
Fowowe noted the situation had become more alarming for girls, as many families feared exposing them to security risks associated with attending school, leading some communities to completely abandon public education because of persistent insecurity.
Furthermore, educational safety groups are advocating for an immediate expansion of specialized protective programs to restore community confidence.
The educationist said that addressing the crisis would require a multi-layer strategy involving government, security agencies, communities and other education stakeholders.
He called for the deployment of trained security personnel and rapid response teams to vulnerable schools across the country, emphasizing the need for improved welfare, training, and accountability for safety personnel assigned to protect educational institutions.
The Issues
- Securing rural and conflict-prone schools without creating an atmosphere of fear that deters student enrollment.
- Reversing the growing out-of-school numbers caused by parents withdrawing children due to kidnapping fears.
- Managing the deep, long-term cognitive and emotional trauma inflicted upon children who survive educational abductions.
What’s Being Said
- Highlighting the staggering global scale of the country’s drop-out numbers, ANPEIN National President Mr Sunday Fowowe stated: “Nigeria had over 18 million out-of-school children as at 2025, making it the country with the highest number globally.”
- Detailing the psychological pressure influencing household choices in high-risk zones, he noted: “Fear created by repeated attacks on schools has forced many parents, especially in vulnerable communities, to withdraw their children from school,”
- Explaining the hidden mental damage affecting young survivors of security raids, the expert observed that “beyond the immediate physical dangers, victims of school attacks often suffer long-term psychological trauma capable of affecting their emotional stability, cognitive development and academic performance.”
- Demanding that state administrators treat institutional safety as an urgent structural emergency, Fowowe insisted: “Education cannot flourish in an environment of fear. Protecting schools and ensuring safety of learners must be treated as a national priority,”
- Emphasizing the macro-economic stakes linked to current defense failures, he concluded that “Nigeria’s future prosperity and stability would depend largely on the education, security and confidence of its children.”
What’s Next
- The Federal Government will review calls to install surveillance technologies, alarm systems, and emergency response protocols in high-risk zones.
- Community leaders will collaborate with local police commands to set up stronger intelligence gathering mechanisms to prevent incoming attacks.
- Administrators of the Safe Schools Initiative will outline expansion schedules to cover more vulnerable communities with regular monitoring.
Bottom Line
Citing a crisis that has left Nigeria with over 18 million out-of-school children due to persistent abduction fears, ANPEIN has called for a multi-layer national strategy to deploy rapid response teams, expand the Safe Schools Initiative, and install surveillance systems to protect learning institutions.
