The Federal Government has actually advanced a proposition to inject an additional N5bn into the Safe Schools Effort in the 2026 budget plan, in spite of mounting scrutiny from the National Assembly over the program’s effectiveness and accusations of fund mismanagement.
Information of the proposed allocation, listed under Capital Supplements in your house of Representatives Order Paper dated March 31, 2026, were acquired on Wednesday.
The move comes as legislators magnify oversight of the effort, revealing concerns that repeated attacks on schools persist regardless of years of financial investment and policy interventions.
Earlier, the Senate directed a full-blown examination into the program, vowing to investigate all funds launched because its beginning in 2014. The probe follows a rise in school abductions and growing public doubt about whether the effort is providing on its mandate.
Government forecasts suggest that about N144.7 bn will have been invested in the program between 2023 and 2026. Out of this figure, N82.9 bn is allocated for security companies to cover procurement of arms, training, devices, and functional logistics.
Under the National Intend On Financing Safe Schools, the Federal government is expected to contribute N119.83 bn, while state governments are forecasted to offer N24.93 bn.
A breakdown of disbursements shows that the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps got N5bn in 2023, N5.25 bn in 2024, N5.51 bn in 2025, and a projected N5.79 bn in 2026.
Likewise, Defence Head office was assigned N4bn in 2023, N200m in 2024, N4.41 bn in 2025, and N4.63 bn for 2026. The Nigeria Police got N5.73 bn in 2023, N6.01 bn in 2024, N6.31 bn in 2025, and a forecasted N6.63 bn in 2026.
The Department of State Services was designated N5.29 bn in 2023, N5.55 bn in 2024, N5.83 bn in 2025, and is anticipated to get N6.78 bn in 2026.
The Safe Schools Effort was presented following the kidnapping of schoolgirls in Chibok, with the objective of enhancing security in vulnerable schools, particularly in high-risk states such as Borno, Yobe, Kaduna, and Niger. It was later broadened to cover institutions across the nation.
Regardless of these efforts, attacks on schools have actually continued, consisting of a current kidnapping occurrence in Kebbi State, raising fresh concerns about accountability and the programme’s effect.
Security expert Oladele Fajana protected the scale of funding for security, specifying that no quantity designated to safeguarding lives and home ought to be thought about extreme if properly made use of.
He, nevertheless, stressed the need for rigorous oversight to guarantee funds are efficiently released and the effort accomplishes its objectives.
Another professional, Jackson Ojo, associated persistent insecurity to corruption, arguing that mismanagement of resources weakens efforts to secure schools.
He called for a thorough review of previous costs before approving additional funds, firmly insisting that responsibility needs to be prioritised.
Ojo likewise raised issues about the lack of basic security facilities in lots of schools, questioning how many institutions have functional border fencing efficient in hindering attacks.