Three hundred participants from six states in the North-Central Geopolitical Zone have completed a one-day capacity-building training organised by the National Safe School Response Coordination Centre at the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps national headquarters in Abuja.
The training, aimed at improving school safety, brought together state coordinators and desk officers from Benue, Nasarawa, Kogi, Niger, Plateau, and the Federal Capital Territory.
This was contained in a statement signed by the NSCDC spokesperson, Babawale Afolabi, on Wednesday.
The training, themed “Ensuring Safer Schools for All,” was designed to enhance the capacity of participants in their roles of ensuring safer school environments.
It was part of the NSCDC’s broader efforts to support the Safe Schools Project and align with the federal government’s Safe Schools Declaration.
The initiative, which began with a vulnerability study of schools in 2021, aims to provide secure learning environments for students, teachers, and host communities.
According to the statement, the Commandant General of the NSCDC, Abubakar Audi, emphasised the importance of training and retraining for effective service delivery and safer schools across the nation.
Audi, in his keynote speech delivered by Deputy Commandant General for Technical Services, Zakari Ningi, urged “participants to take full advantage of the training and to share their newly acquired knowledge with colleagues and grassroots communities.”
The event featured presentations from experts in various fields, offering new insights into emerging security challenges such as cyber threats, drug abuse, and cultism.
The Commander of the NSSRCC, Rabiu Muhammed, highlighted the need for continuous innovation and collaboration in addressing the evolving risks faced by schools.
He emphasised that “the training aimed to equip participants with the latest skills and technologies to better protect schoolchildren.”
The National Coordinator for Financing Safe Schools, Hajiya Ibrahim, delivered a goodwill message that recognized the efforts of the NSCDC and other stakeholders despite financial challenges.
She encouraged participants to actively engage in the training and ensure that the knowledge gained is cascaded to their local communities for maximum impact.
