How banditry and insecurity are shutting down Northern Nigeria’s education system

In a dusty, abandoned classroom in rural Katsina, rusted chairs lie scattered under broken roofs. The blackboard, once alive with chalk-written dreams, now bears only silence. For Fatima, a 12-year-old who once hoped to become a doctor, that silence has lasted over a year—ever since her school was shut down following a wave of kidnappings in the area.

Across Northern Nigeria, hundreds of schools have been closed or are operating at minimum capacity as insecurity—fueled by armed banditry, kidnappings, and insurgency—continues to disrupt education. According to recent data from UNICEF and Nigeria’s Ministry of Education, over 1,500 schools in the North have remained shut, with more than one million children out of school due to safety concerns.

“Education has become a casualty of war,” says Hauwa Ibrahim, an education rights activist based in Zamfara. “Parents are too afraid to send their children to school, and teachers are equally fearful of returning.”

In Zamfara, Niger, Kaduna, and Katsina states, schools have become prime targets for criminal gangs seeking ransom. The notorious abductions—such as the Kankara abduction of 2020, and the Bethel Baptist kidnapping in Kaduna—sent shockwaves across the country and underscored the vulnerability of educational institutions in conflict zones.

Many of the affected states have adopted a “school clustering” model, relocating students to fewer, supposedly safer locations. But this has led to overcrowding, inadequate infrastructure, and logistical nightmares—further discouraging enrollment.

ALSO READ: Panic in Katsina as helicopter allegedly drops armed bandits in village attack

Bashir Lawal, a secondary school teacher in Sokoto, said his school’s population has dropped by half. “Some of our brightest students have disappeared. Their families moved south, or they’re just too afraid to come back.”

Education experts warn that the long-term consequences are dire. With Nigeria already hosting the world’s highest number of out-of-school children—an estimated 20 million—the Northern education crisis could widen the poverty and inequality gap for generations.

“We are not just losing time; we are losing a whole generation,” says Dr. Maryam Garba, a policy researcher at the University of Abuja. “The link between security and education is undeniable. Without safe learning environments, development in the region is impossible.”

Efforts by the federal government to secure schools—including the Safe Schools Initiative—have fallen short, with many rural areas left vulnerable due to limited military presence and poor road access. While some governors have called for community policing and increased surveillance, progress has been slow and uneven.

For students like Fatima, the future remains uncertain. “I want to go back to school,” she says softly, clutching a worn notebook. “But I don’t want to be taken.”

As Nigeria looks toward its development goals, experts agree that reclaiming the right to education in the North must become a national emergency. Until then, the silence in these schools will continue to echo the country’s growing crisis.