Nasarawa Govt Inaugurates Safe Schools Response Centre 

By Nkiru Njemanze

In a bid to address the menace of insecurity bedevilling the education sector, the Nasarawa State Government has inaugurated the state’s Safe Schools Response Centre in Lafia.

The State Governor, Abdullahi Sule disclosed this in Lafia at a Sensitisation Workshop on the National Safe Schools Response Coordination Centre (NSSRCC) and the Safe Schools Programme in Nigeria, organised by Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC).

Represented by his Deputy, Dr Emmanuel Akabe, the Governor described the protection of education as a collective responsibility by all and encouraged residents of the state to collaborate with security agencies to ensure the maximum success of the Safe Schools implementation project.

He lauded the establishment of the NSSRCC  and called on individuals and corporate bodies to also contribute by building perimeter fencing and hostels in schools under the PPP arrangement to secure education.

In a remark, the Commandant General of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, Dr Ahmed Abubakar Audi stated that the menace of violence and attacks on schools in Nigeria has spanned over a decade.

The CG noted that the NSSRCC was created by the government and domiciled under the NSCDC, with the responsibility of coordinating safety and security responses against violence in schools and host communities.

He said, “The centre does not function in isolation from other security agencies, but serves as a coordinating agent, also collaborating with all security agencies and other relevant stakeholders with the Federal and State Ministry of Education, and Local Government Education Authorities (LGEAs) as major partners”.

I want to clear certain doubts and misgivings about the responsibility of the Centre and to re-emphasize the fact that the Centre is operating on the principles of a whole-of-society approach.

To this effect, both federal, state and local governments are being engaged as partners in progress,” NSCDC Boss explained.

On his part, the keynote speaker, Brigadier General Martins, called on state governments and relevant stakeholders to key into the Safe Schools Project.

Two lectures based on the theme: strategies for community engagement and information gathering for the protection of schools and host communities in Nigeria were delivered by Timothy Michael Maigida and Air Commodore EE Owai.

Edited By Grace Namiji