Faith, Fear and Forests: Understanding the Ideological and Criminal Dimensions of Insecurity in Nigeria’s Education Sector

By Shemudara Blessing Morayo

Education is often described as the foundation of national development, yet in Nigeria, schools have increasingly become targets of violence. Over the last decade, attacks on educational institutions have transformed from isolated incidents into a persistent national crisis. Thousands of students have been displaced, hundreds of schools have been closed, and countless families now live with the fear that sending their children to school could place them in danger.

This crisis is driven by two distinct but interconnected forces: ideological extremism and criminal opportunism. Together, these forces have turned schools into battlegrounds and transformed education from a pathway to opportunity into a source of anxiety for many communities.The ideological dimension of school attacks in Nigeria is closely associated with Boko Haram, an extremist group that emerged in the early 2000s.

The group’s name is commonly interpreted as “Western education is forbidden,” reflecting its belief that secular education undermines Islamic values and traditions. To Boko Haram, schools are not merely buildings where children learn; they are symbols of a cultural and religious system the group seeks to reject. Schools that promote Western curricula, mixed-gender learning environments, or perceived Christian influence are viewed as threats to the society the group hopes to create.

For this reason, educational institutions became strategic targets. Attacking schools allowed insurgents to attract international attention, demonstrate the government’s inability to protect citizens, and recruit or indoctrinate young people. Students, particularly girls, became valuable tools for propaganda, forced marriages, and political bargaining.

Through these attacks, Boko Haram sought not only to spread fear but also to discourage participation in formal education altogether.The most famous example of this strategy occurred on April 14, 2014, when Boko Haram militants attacked Government Girls Secondary School in Chibok, Borno State. While students were preparing for examinations, 276 girls were abducted and taken into insurgent-controlled territory.

The incident sparked outrage across Nigeria and around the world, giving rise to the global #BringBackOurGirls campaign. Although many of the girls have since escaped or been released through negotiations and military efforts, dozens remain missing years later. The Chibok abduction became a symbol of the vulnerability of schools in conflict zones and demonstrated how extremist groups could use schoolchildren to gain international attention and political leverage.A similar incident occurred four years later in Dapchi, Yobe State.

Iin February 2018, fighters from the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), a faction that split from Boko Haram, kidnapped 110 students from a government girls’ school. Unlike the Chibok incident, most of the girls were released within weeks. However, one student, Leah Sharibu, remained in captivity after reportedly refusing to renounce her Christian faith. Her case highlighted the religious and sectarian dimensions that continue to influence some attacks on schools and demonstrated how ideological motivations remain deeply embedded within certain insurgent movements

.While extremist violence dominated headlines during the first phase of the crisis, a new threat emerged after 2018. Across Nigeria’s Northwest and parts of the North-Central region, heavily armed criminal groups commonly referred to as bandits began targeting schools.

Unlike Boko Haram, these groups are primarily motivated by financial gain rather than ideology. For them, schools represent attractive opportunities because they contain large numbers of vulnerable victims whose families, communities, and governments may be willing to pay significant sums for their release.This shift transformed student kidnapping into a profitable criminal enterprise. Boarding schools became especially vulnerable because hundreds of students often reside in one location with limited security.

Criminal groups discovered that by abducting dozens of children at once, they could maximize pressure on authorities and families while increasing potential ransom payments. As a result, school kidnappings evolved into a business model sustained by fear, weak security structures, and the desperation of affected communities.Niger State became one of the regions most affected by this trend.

In February 2021, armed men attacked Government Science College in Kagara, killing a student and abducting dozens of students and staff members. Just a few months later, another large-scale kidnapping occurred at Salihu Tanko Islamic School in Tegina, where approximately 136 children were taken captive. Unlike attacks carried out by extremist groups, these incidents were largely driven by economic motives. The objective was not to challenge educational values but to generate profit through ransom payments.A key factor enabling both insurgents and bandits is the presence of vast forested areas across northern Nigeria.

Forests such as Sambisa, Kamuku, and Rugu provide natural hideouts where armed groups can train, plan operations, and hold abducted victims. These remote areas are difficult to monitor and often lie beyond the effective reach of security forces. The forests function as safe havens that allow criminal and extremist groups to evade capture while launching attacks on nearby communities and schools.The impact of these attacks on education has been devastating. Thousands of children have missed months or even years of schooling. Many parents, fearing for their children’s safety, have withdrawn them from school altogether. Some states have closed boarding schools in high-risk areas, disrupting education for entire communities.

Beyond the immediate loss of learning, survivors often experience severe psychological trauma that affects their ability to return to normal academic life. Teachers, too, face increased risks, making it difficult to recruit and retain qualified personnel in vulnerable regions.The Nigerian government has responded through a combination of military operations, policy initiatives, and community-based approaches.

Following the Chibok abduction, the Safe Schools Initiative was launched to improve security infrastructure and emergency preparedness in schools. Military campaigns have targeted insurgent and bandit camps, while local vigilante groups have been mobilized to assist security agencies in some states. Nevertheless, significant challenges remain, including inadequate funding, corruption, difficult terrain, and the limited capacity of security institutions to protect thousands of schools spread across vast rural areas.

Addressing the crisis requires more than military action alone. Schools must be physically secured through improved fencing, surveillance systems, communication networks, and trained security personnel. At the same time, long-term solutions must tackle the root causes of insecurity, including poverty, unemployment, and the marginalization of rural communities. Efforts to improve trust in formal education, while respecting local cultural and religious values, can also reduce the appeal of extremist narratives.

Furthermore, survivors of abduction and violence need sustained psychological support and educational opportunities to rebuild their lives.The story of insecurity in Nigeria’s education sector is ultimately a story of faith, fear, and forests. Faith represents the ideological beliefs that motivate extremist attacks on education. Fear reflects the psychological weapon used by both insurgents and criminals to disrupt learning and intimidate communities. Forests symbolize the physical spaces that enable these groups to operate beyond the reach of the state.

Understanding the relationship between these three elements is essential for developing effective solutions. Protecting schools is not simply a security challenge; it is an investment in Nigeria’s future. Without safe learning environments, the country’s hopes for development, stability, and prosperity will remain under threat.

Shemudara Blessing Morayo is a graduate of Veritas University Bwari, Abuja, and she’s currently serving as an NYSC Corper at the Institute for Peace and Conflict Resolution (IPCR). She can be reached via shemudarablessing2002@gmail.com