Zamfara shuts 75 secondary schools to avoid bandits’ attack

Zamfara State government has continued to shut down over 75 secondary schools in the state to avoid attacks and kidnapping by bandits.

The Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Education, Alhaji Kabiru Attahiru, in a goodwill message at a two-day meeting on domesticating the National Policy on Gender in Education (NPGE) organised by the state’s Universal Basic Education Board in partnership with UNICEF on Saturday in Gusau, disclosed that most of the schools are girls secondary schools closed since September 2021 following attacks on two girls’ schools in the state.

He said the state government is working round-the-clock to reopen the schools closed since September 2021 following threats by bandits.

The permanent secretary explained that the government directed the closure of the schools following the abduction of 75 students from Government Day Secondary School, Kaya, in Maradun Local Government Area.

Attahiru emphasised the need to include field officers in national education policy formulation on gender education to attain the desired result.

UNICEF consultant in Zamfara State, Dr. Ahmed Hashim, highlighted the objectives of the committee including reviewing inputs from previous meetings on NPGE.