‘900 schools burnt, 176 teachers killed in Borno’

Nine hundred schools and 176 teachers have been killed since the onslaught of Boko Haram in Borno State in 2011, Governor Kashim Shettima has said.

The governor disclosed this at the inaugural meeting of the steering committee on safe schools initiative with the coordinating minister for the economy and minister of finance, Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, secretary to the state government of Adamawa, Prof AL Tukur, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, Mr. Nduka Obaigbena, and the director-general of National Emergency Management Agency, Mr. Sani Sidi in attendance.

The committee, which was inaugurated last week by President Goodluck Jonathan, deliberated on measures to restore safety to schools.

A statement by the special adviser to the minister of finance, Paul Nwabuikwu, summarised the highpoints of the meeting thus:

“The committee was briefed by representatives of the emergency states led by the governor of Borno state Alhaji Kashim Shettima on the current state of education following the insurgency.

“Borno state, the hardest hit by the activities of Boko Haram, reported that 900 schools have been destroyed and 176 teachers killed from 2011 to date. Further briefing is expected from Yobe and Adamawa representatives.

“Security and counter-terrorism experts from donor agencies formally presented a road-map for school safety.

“The safe schools initiative is considering a short, medium and long term strategy for making schools safer, especially in the North East.

“Several options being discussed by the committee for immediate implementation include visual, temporary and mobile schools; schools at home, in a box, container and tents as well as longer term strategies for rebuilding schools.”

The committee highlighted the need to work with parents, the community and other stakeholders in designing sustainable safe schools solution.

In the course of the meeting a technical committee was set up to work out the details and modalities for implementing key decisions.

The technical committee has its chairman the NEMA DG, with commissioners of finance in the three emergency states; representatives of the national security adviser, World Bank, Africa Development Bank, UNICEF, DfID , office of the minister of finance and security experts from donor agencies as members.