Boko Haram displaces 195,000 students

No fewer than 195,000 students have been displaced as a result of the activities of Boko Haram in Borno, Yobe and Adamawa States.
The breakdown of the affected students showed that 7,135 are from Adamawa State, 113,635 in Borno State and 73,894 from Yobe states.
These figures were reeled out Monday by the Coordinating Minister of the Economy and Chairman of Steering Committee on Safe School Initiative, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, at the opening ceremony of the interactive meetings organized by the National Emergency Management Agency with Principals and Guidance Counselling masters of the affected schools in the three states,
The Minister, according to a statement by Ibrahim Farinloye, the Public Information Officer of NEMA, said that as at this moment, 267 schools have been affected by the activities of the insurgents.
These are 73 in Adamawa State, 171 in Borno State and 56 in Yobe State.
Okonjo-Iweala further said that 115 schools were completely destroyed, with 101 of them in Borno State.
She added that 139 other schools are partially destroyed.
The Minister revealed that the Technical Committee on the Safe School Initiaitive programme has identified 800 students from each of the states in high risk areas for transfer to 43 Federal Unity Colleges, making a total of 2,400 students.
The remaining students in high risk areas, she stressed, would be relocated to secondary schools within the state into safer areas under the leadership of the state ministry of education.
The relocation, Dr. Okonjo-Iweala emphasized, was with voluntary agreement with the parents and guardians who choose the schools and towns of their choice that they want their wards to be relocated.
She therefore implored the principals and counsellors to help the students overcome the stress, trauma and facilitate faster integration into the new school environment.
The Minister urged the school authorities to pay special attention on girl-child students as well as those who may not be able to pick-up with their new mates in academic and cultural levels.
The Director General of NEMA, Alhaji Muhammad Sani-Sidi, explained that the Safe School Initiative Programme is a presidential initiative aimed at ensuring school safety and continuation of education, which comprises transfer of 800 students each from high risk areas in the three of emergency states of Borno, Adamawa and Yobe States to Federal Unity Colleges across the country; increasing the capacity of schools within the IDPs camps, including communities hosting IDPs; and repair and reconstruction of schools using the safer school model with full security measures.
Sani-Sidi further stated that the interactive meeting was to ensure smooth take-off of the relocation of the students to their new schools across the Federal Unity Colleges.
He urged the Principals/Guidance Counselling masters to take proper understanding of the motive of the transfer, own the programme and be committed to it.
He harped on the imperative need for ownership and commitment by these two important key players in the school system, which will guarantee same with other teachers alike in the school.
Assuring Nigerians of the pragmatic actions of the government, the Minister of Education, Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau, stated that the Safe School Initiative will no doubt provide adequate response for protection of schools and prevention of future attacks on schools.