IA-Foundation, the UK charity/NGO set up by Ibironke Adeagbo to reduce the number of ‘out-of-school’ children in Nigeria, is partnering with Halogen Group to organise a global virtual summit on the 4th of June 2021, from 10am to 12 noon, to proffer solutions to the security challenges facing Nigerian schools.
The current Nigerian situation is indicating that our nation’s schools have increasingly become soft targets for violence and security incidents, thus becoming high among the most frequent targets. The objective of this summit is to get beyond the rhetoric and posturing, by embarking on the rigor of ascertaining the root causes – the ‘whys’ – and exploring what needs to be done to make our schools and education institutions safe and secured places to learn and grow, whilst providing interventions that will become part of the establishments’ central culture.
At a joint press briefing by the CEO/Founder, Mrs Ibironke Adeagbo, a chartered accountant and education advocate, who has a vision to ensure every Nigerian child is educated to reduce poverty and improve social mobility, said the insecurity challenges is an attack on the country’s educational economy and needs a multi-dimensional approach to tackling it, hence the partnership with Halogen Group. She said no human society advances beyond its quality of education and learning.
At the briefing, the CEO of Halogen group, Mr Wale Olaoye, also confirmed that, we all have a moral and legal responsibility to keep children safe in schools. He went on to say, that some of the attacks on schools might have been prevented with better physical protections and enhanced security response to early warning signs and threats. Most schools have limited or no security infrastructure/architecture. There is a need to establish an environment that provides “psychological security” by equipping the students and teachers with basic security education that builds trust, empowers, and ensures ‘security inclusion’.
High profile speakers such as the special adviser to President Mohammadu Buhari on social investment, Mrs Maryam Uwais, the Lagos state commissioner for Education Mrs Folasade Adefisayo, ace broadcaster Babajide Kolade-Otitoju, US security expert Jason Destein, the CEO of Lagos state Security Trust Fund, Mr Abdurrasaq Balogun, Security Expert Dennis Amachree (MON), Bamidele Ademola-Olateju social commentators and Kemi Areola Special adviser to the minister of Youth and Sports Development.
The speakers would present their views and thoughts on two key areas. Their understanding and interpretation of the issues and what they propose that the stakeholders such as government, students, education communities, local communities etc need to do to address security and safety at schools. There needs to be a sense of national urgency and political willingness to ensure children are safe in schools. We encourage everyone interested in securing children in schools to register with this link https://schoolssecurity.eventbrite.co.uk
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Security Summit on Nigerian schools
