At least 188 public schools have been shut across northern Nigeria due to rising insecurity.
The closures, which cut across Zamfara, Niger, Sokoto, Kaduna, Katsina, Benue and Kebbi states, have left thousands of children out of school, with many classrooms converted into shelters for internally displaced persons (IDPs) or bases for security operatives.
Reporters, however, warn that the figure could be higher, as many communities remain inaccessible due to persistent attacks.
In Zamfara State alone, 39 schools, 20 primary and 19 secondary, remain closed in bandits-prone LGAs such as Anka, Tsafe and Kaura Namoda.
Some are now occupied by troops, while others lie abandoned, leaving children without access to education for over six years.
Similar closures have been recorded in Niger State, where at least 30 schools, including the Government Science College, Kagara, have been deserted or converted to military camps.
Sokoto and Kaduna each reported six schools shut, many of them boarding institutions.
In Katsina, a 2024 UNICEF-backed report found that 52 schools had been closed, particularly in Batsari, Faskari, and Kankara LGAs, areas that have witnessed repeated mass abductions of students.
Benue has also seen widespread disruption, with Amnesty International confirming that 55 schools were destroyed or closed in 2024 alone, many of them now IDP shelters.
The crisis comes amid Nigeria’s already alarming education statistics, with UNICEF estimating that between 10 and 20 million children are out of school nationwide. Katsina, Sokoto and Kebbi states rank highest, with millions of children outside classrooms due to displacement, fear, or direct attacks on schools.
Communities interviewed described classrooms overtaken by bandits, children relocating to distant urban centres, and others abandoning education entirely.
In some IDP camps, makeshift schools have been opened, but educationists warn this is far from sufficient.
“This is a serious blow to the future of our children. Without urgent action, a whole generation risks being lost to illiteracy, poverty, and crime,” warned educationists and security analysts who spoke with reporters.
Parents, teachers and local leaders across the affected states described their frustration, noting that some schools have been empty for years, while others function intermittently depending on the movement of armed groups.
Experts fear the long-term consequences will be devastating.
UNICEF officials have warned that every year of lost schooling deepens “learning poverty” and risks locking millions of children into cycles of violence and hopelessness.
Security experts also caution that many out-of-school children could be recruited into bandit groups or other criminal activities.
Despite repeated calls, both the Nigerian Army and Defence Headquarters offered no official comment at the time of filing this report.
