Students’ abductions in Nigeria: A decade-long crisis

For more than a decade, abductions have become the worst nightmare for students in Nigeria—especially in the northern region. According to the humanitarian organisation Save the Children, more than 40 attacks have been carried out on schools in the North West within eight years. What should be safe learning spaces have turned into high-risk zones, and addressing this crisis has become urgent. The 2014 abduction of 276 schoolgirls in Chibok by Boko Haram exposed a shocking national failure: the inability of security agencies to protect the education sector. That tragedy should have led to decisive reforms to prevent future attacks. Instead, it opened the door to more kidnappings, leaving families in pain, fear, and endless uncertainty. In the last seven years alone, over 1,300 students have been kidnapped across 15 schools in Northern Nigeria. Some of the most devastating cases include the abduction of 110 students at Dapchi Girls Secondary School in Yobe (2018), over 300 students at Kankara Science Secondary School in Katsina (2020), and 317 girls from Jangebe Girls Secondary School in Zamfara. Recent kidnappings at St. Mary’s Secondary School in Niger State and Maga Girls Secondary School in Kebbi further show how terrorism and banditry continue to worsen across the region. Former Yobe State governor, Ibrahim Gaidam, once blamed the military for the Dapchi abduction, noting that soldiers were withdrawn just a week before the attack. He also recalled the 2013 Buni Yadi tragedy, where the removal of troops left the school exposed, leading to the killing of 29 students by Boko Haram. More recently, Kebbi State governor, Nasir Idris, questioned why security personnel left Mega Girls School only hours before kidnappers struck. These repeated security lapses raise troubling questions. Are these mere coincidences—or signs that powerful interests may be enabling the crimes? Whatever the truth, the persistent failures have deepened parents’ fears and driven many children out of school, contributing to high dropout rates and increasing early marriages. For Nigeria, the abduction crisis is not just a security issue. It is an attack on education, on childhood, and on the nation’s future. Until concrete, consistent, and transparent measures are taken to secure schools, the cycle of fear and disruption will continue.

Lukman Yusuf Aliyu, Email: [email protected]

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