Save the Children: Over 1,680 students kidnapped in Nigeria since 2014

Save the Children, the charity organisation, says over 1,680 schoolchildren have been kidnapped in Nigeria since 2014 when terrorists abducted 276 students in Chibok, Borno state.

According to a report released by the charity organisation on Thursday, over 180  students were killed and nearly 90 injured in 70 attacks between April 2014 and December 2022.

The report said 49 of the attacks occurred in the north-west, while the north-central accounted for 11 attacks.  

Also, an estimated 60 school staff were kidnapped and 14 killed in those attacks. Twenty-five school buildings were also reportedly destroyed during the period.

Speaking on the report, Famari Barro, the country director of Save the Children in Nigeria, said more measures needed to be put in place to prevent attacks on schoolchildren.

Barro added that special attention should be paid to the health and education of victims of abduction.

“Nearly 10 years after the tragic abduction of the Chibok girls made international headlines, more than 90 of them are still held or missing, and countless children and teachers still live under the threat of violence, forcing many to flee or interrupt their education, sometimes forever,” he said.

“The combination of the trauma and loss of education resulting from these attacks is likely to be lifelong unless children are provided with the means and support to recover from the traumatic events they have been through and are able to return to school.

“It is vital that children’s lives and right to education are protected through the implementation of the safe schools declaration across the country.”

On his part, Ibrahim Sunoma, the deputy speaker of the national children’s parliament, called on the government to prioritise the safety of schoolchildren across the nation.

“We are appealing to the government and other relevant stakeholders to prioritise expanding the implementation of the safe schools declaration across the country to ensure that children can learn in a protective environment in schools,” he said.

“Government at all levels should ensure the implementation of the national policy on safety, security and violence-free schools that would prevent education from attacks, more investments and funding should be made in preventing education from attacks in all 36 states of the federation and federal capital territory (FCT).”