Nigeria’s Safe Schools Initiative captures a painful contradiction between fiscal ambition and lived insecurity. Despite a N144.77 billion (2023–2026) federal commitment to secure learning spaces, classrooms remain under siege. In May 2026, gunmen abducted dozens of students in Borno State and attacked schools in Oyo’s Oriire LGA, exposing how billions in Abuja fail to reach the frontlines.
The crisis is not new. UNICEF data show 10.2 million children out of school, with only 27 % possessing basic reading skills and 25 % foundational numerac
