The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has partnered with the Federal Ministry of Defence on a project called “UNICEF & Save the Children”, aimed at eliminating attacks on schools in the North East and ensuring children's safety and security.
UNICEF Education Officer, Judith Giwa-Amu who is responsible for Education in Emergencies Coordination at National Level disclosed this at an event held in Abuja for the commemoration of the 2020 International Day for the protection of Education. She added that the day is marked on the 9th of September every year to review the attention given to the protection of education.
According to Giwa-Amu, the next generation becomes endangered where children experience educational gap as a result of fear in attending classes. She stressed that the security, education and humanitarian sectors are key areas that need to be focused on to ensure the safe school declaration is implemented. She further identified the ministry of defence as an important player in the application of the safe school declaration.
While appreciating the efforts of the organization, the Minister of Defence, Major General Bashir Magashi, stated that education is one of the most prized assets of any country. He reiterated the commitment of the defence ministry in protecting the lives of the citizenry and called for cooperation in tackling any attack on education.
