Women Empowerment and Legal Aid (WELA) has expressed grave concern over the continuing attacks on schools and the recurring abduction of schoolchildren across Nigeria despite the establishment of the Safe Schools Initiative more than a decade ago.
In a press statement signed by its Chairperson, Funmi Falana, SAN, WELA said recent incidents involving the abduction of schoolchildren have once again brought national attention to the vulnerability of schools and the frightening reality that many Nigerian parents still send their children to school uncertain whether they will return home safely.
The organisation said beyond the headlines, statistics and official statements, “real children continue to bear the consequences of insecurity,” adding that families continue to endure anxiety and trauma while communities struggle with the fear that schools, which ought to be places of learning and safety, have become targets of criminal violence.
According to WELA, the Safe Schools Initiative was launched in 2014 following the abduction of the Chibok schoolgirls by the Federal Government, in partnership with private sector stakeholders and international development partners, to improve the security of schools, protect students and teachers and ensure that children, particularly girls, could continue their education without fear.
