NSCDC wins 2023 most active safe schools implementation institution award

Oru Leonard 

The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), has won an award of honour as ‘the most active safe schools implementation institution of the year, 2023.’

The award according to the National President of the Association for Public Policy Analysis (APPA), Comrade Princewill Okorie, FAPPA, is in recognition of the NSCDC effort in the protection of schools, teachers, pupils in schools and members of host communities of schools across the country.

On the yardstick of arriving at NSCDC as the recipient institution of the award by the Association for Public Policy Analysis, the National President explained that it is based on the commendable effort made by the Corps to ensure the security of schools under the Safe Schools Programme.

The association states, “challenging state of insecurity affecting the nation’s school system is what Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps under the leadership of Dr Ahmed Abubakar Audi is taking with commendable effort through the Safe School programme.”

The NSCDC has produced the school’s safety and emergency response tips, tagged: A Handbook of the National Safe Schools Response Coordination Centre (NSSRCC). NSCDC has also developed a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for the NSSRCC-organized National Summit on Safe Schools 2023 and created a platform for safe school initiative, APPA added.

Reacting to the honour and award given to the Corps, Commandant General of the NSCDC, Dr Ahmed Abubakar Audi, mni, OFR, said the award is considered a testament to service delivery by the Corps.

The CG who was represented by Commander of the NSSRCC, CSC Tersoo Shaapera, PhD, added that the award will spur the service to do more not only in school protection but also in other statutory mandates of the Corps and called on all and sundry to contribute their quota to confront the menace of insecurity bedevilling other sectors.

Recall that the Corps as a lead agency in the protection of critical national assets and Infrastructure, and as one of the critical stakeholders in the safe schools implementation project, had in 2021 conducted a vulnerability survey of schools in Nigeria, an effort which provides credible data for planning and implementation.

Also, under the NSSRCC located at the national headquarters of the Corps which is the first of its kind in Nigeria and Africa, over 1,892 persons comprising security personnel, members of civil society organisations and teachers among other categories of persons have been trained by the centre in 10 months of its existence, all as efforts to entrench security in school system.

Consequent to the effort made so far, over 48 planned attacks on schools have been foiled in the country.

(NSCDC NHQ Media)