Chibok
Dapchi
Buni Yadi
Birnin Yauri
The Boko Haram terror group was born in Borno state, Northeast Nigeria.
First, they banded into a group of deeply religious people.
Then, they morphed into radically religious people.
No one could have guessed it then, but the group would go on to transform into one of the deadliest terror groups in the world.
The terror group, alongside its splinter group known as Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), and other groups started springing up in the Northwest part of the country.
They have since gone on to wreak havoc nationwide, causing the deaths and displacement of millions of people.
Nigeria has launched some counter-insurgency attempts with several codenames, both kinetic and non-kinetic. From operation "Hadin Kai" to operation "Safe Corridor".
However, there does not seem to be any real, coordinated and enduring counter-insurgency attempt to tackle or revive one particular sector that has suffered greatly from the insurgency.
Education
Some of the deadliest attacks have been done against schools, from the Northeast to the Northcentral regions in recent times.
In 2009 there were school attacks in Borno state. Two blocks of three classrooms each were set on fire by suspected Boko Haram members.
In 2010, there was another attack in Maiduguri. Boko Haram insurgents set ablaze 36 classrooms and offices.
In 2012, there were about 17 reported cases of school attacks in 9 locations in Northern Nigeria.
In 2013 there were about 9 reported school attacks in at least 4 localities.
2014 recorded about 17 school attacks in 5 states. Multiple attacks were reported in some areas.
For example, in February 2014, Boko Haram attacked the Federal Government College, Buni Yadi, and killed at least 29 boys.
But they also burned down the entire school, with only the mosque surviving, according to many accounts.
The school was automatically shut down, and many residents fled the town in the days that followed. Not long after this, the town fell to Boko Haram.
In April 2014, barely two months after, the terror group attacked the Government Girls Secondary School in Chibok, in neighbouring Borno state.
They abducted a total of around 276 schoolgirls. The Chibok abduction was what finally caught the attention of the world.
Even though over a hundred of them escaped or were released, many are still in captivity.
The school? It has been abandoned and not revived.
In 2015, there were 2 reported school attacks in Northern Nigeria. Each in Yobe and Plateau state.
In 2017, there were at least 10 reported school attacks across three localities in Borno State.
In 2018, terrorists attacked the Federal Government Girls College in Dapchi, Yobe. They made away with about 115 girls.
They were released later.
However, to this day, the school remains deserted and nonfunctional.
In 2019, there were at least 7 school attacks reported across Northern Nigeria.
In 2020, about 6 schools were attacked across three Northern states.
In 2021, data showed that there were about 21 attacks in schools over the region.
One of the schools terrorists attacked is in Birnin Yauri, Northwest Nigeria. They abducted scores of teenage schoolgirls.
The school remains closed to this day, and nine of the girls were in captivity for a longer period of time than the rest.
They were released not long ago.
2022 recorded at least 6 school attacks in the region.
We have carefully chosen four schools to act as case studies, shedding light on the dire state of education in Nigeria.
Simply click on the pulsating icons to engage in an animated retelling of the events at each school.
The schools we have used as case studies for this story have neither been revived nor relocated.
Beyond those attacks, however, more schools have also been closed down in fear of attacks, such as in places like Niger state in the North-central region.
Some of these schools end up being transformed into camps for displaced people, military barracks, and in some instances, just abandoned completely.
Just in Niger state, there are 320 schools that have been closed down due to insecurity.
Click on the pulsating LGAs to see the list of schools in that region.
This is destabilizing for children and development, especially in regions with already low enrollment rates.