The Kebbi State Government has taken decisive action by ordering the immediate shutdown of all public and private secondary schools, along with tertiary institutions across the state. This emergency measure comes as a direct response to the escalating violent attacks targeting educational facilities that have put students and staff at grave risk.
Government Directive and Affected Institutions
Commissioner for Higher Education Alhaji Issa Abubakar-Tunga and Commissioner for Basic and Secondary Education Dr. Halima Bande jointly announced the closure in Birnin Kebbi. The commissioners emphasized that the decision became imperative due to the recent surge in attacks across parts of the state, requiring urgent precautionary measures to protect students and educational personnel.
The comprehensive shutdown affects numerous tertiary institutions including:
- Kebbi State Polytechnic Dakingari
- Abdullahi Fodio University of Science and Technology Aliero
- College of Health Sciences and Technology Jega
- Adamu Augie College of Education Argungu
- School of Remedial Studies Yauri
Notably, the College of Nursing Sciences and Midwifery in Birnin Kebbi remains operational as the sole institution exempted from the closure directive.
Deadly Attack Prompts Emergency Response
The government's decision follows a brutal early-morning assault on Government Girls Comprehensive Senior Secondary School in Maga, where armed militants stormed the premises around 4 a.m. The attackers, equipped with sophisticated weapons, scaled the school fence and forcibly removed 25 schoolgirls from their hostel, taking them to an unknown location.
Tragically, the violent incident resulted in the death of a deputy head teacher who was shot during the attack, while a security guard sustained injuries according to documentation prepared for United Nations authorities.
Police authorities have confirmed the abduction and reported that combined security forces including military units, tactical police teams, and local vigilante groups have been deployed to search nearby forests and pursue the armed kidnappers.
Pattern of Educational Institution Targeting
This distressing event marks the second mass kidnapping from a Kebbi school within a four-year period. In June 2021, more than 100 students and staff were abducted from a government college in the state. Those victims were eventually released in batches over two years following ransom payments, with some female students reportedly forced into marriages and returning with children.
The Maga school attack contributes to the worsening security crisis across northern Nigerian states. Since the infamous 2014 abduction of 276 girls from Chibok in Borno State, mass student kidnappings have become increasingly frequent.
According to UNICEF estimates, the northeast region alone has witnessed over 2,400 grave violations affecting more than 6,800 children since 2014. A separate report by Save the Children revealed that between 2014 and 2022, more than 1,680 students were abducted from schools nationwide.
Banditry has evolved into a multibillion-naira kidnapping industry that continues to devastate northwest Nigeria, where armed gangs regularly raid communities, seize hostages, and terrorize local residents. Despite attempts at negotiations, peace agreements, and vigilante group deployments, the crisis appears to be spiraling beyond control, with hostages increasingly treated as commodities by both bandits and jihadist organizations.
School administrators throughout Kebbi State have been instructed to comply immediately with the closure directive and await further communication regarding when academic activities can safely resume. The commissioners have urged school administrators, parents, and students to remain calm while government authorities continuously monitor the security situation.
