The Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, is asking for the financing budget of the Safe Schools Initiative (SSI) to be domiciled in the Federal Ministry of Education to simplify the coordination and effective execution of the programme.
The Federal Government had introduced the SSI to ensure safer schools in the wake of attacks on schools by bandits and terrorists across the country.
However, schools continued to come under attack as the rate of abduction of school children also spiralled.
The Senate, in a bid to address the problem, set up an ad-hoc committee to investigate the execution of the programme from inception, especially from 2023 to date.
The committee, which is chaired by Senator Orji Uzor Kalu, is looking into how funds provided for the SSI, including donations and regular budgetary appropriation by government across the years, were utilised.
On Friday, Alausa appeared before the committee, where he spoke about Bola Tinubu’s commitment to securing educational institutions across Nigeria.
‘The President has made it clear that the security of our children, teachers and schools is non-negotiable. Security of lives, security of property and the protection of our national sovereignty remain top priorities of this administration,’ he said.
However, he informed the committee that apart from targeted disbursements to security agencies done by the Federal Ministry of Finance, much of the funding for the programme was done four to five years ago, before he assumed office as education minister.
Alausa, who said his ministry did not handle the finances of the SSI, disclosed that he made efforts to establish a department in the ministry and also wrote a memo in a bid to domicile the budget in the ministry, but hadn’t succeeded much.
Speaking further while responding to questions from journalists, Alausa noted that, being the ministry coordinating education, it was only expected that the budget of the SSI should be under its care, but said this hasn’t been the case.
‘The Ministry of Education is responsible for coordinating education policy across the country. We work directly with states, implement programmes, monitor outcomes and oversee schools. For that reason, it was difficult to justify why the financing component of the Safe Schools Initiative was domiciled in another ministry,’ the minister stressed.
He revealed that shortly after assuming office, he formally requested that the programme be transferred.
‘When I became Minister of Education, I wrote to the then Minister of Finance requesting that the Safe Schools financing structure be moved to the Ministry of Education. Although there was support for the idea, administrative constraints delayed the process,’ he added.
He expressed hope that with the SSI being fully domiciled in the ministry today, the financing component would also be concluded soon.
‘Today, the Safe Schools Initiative is officially domiciled in the Federal Ministry of Education. We have also established a dedicated Safe Schools Department to coordinate policy, implementation and monitoring,’ Alausa stated.
The Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr Taiwo Oyedele, who also appeared before the committee, assured the lawmakers of his readiness to cooperate with the investigation.
Oyedele said whatever errors were made in the implementation of the programme could be corrected to meet the overall objective of ensuring safer schools for children and teachers.
He spoke further, ‘Whether those issues occurred before my appointment or not is secondary. As the chairman rightly observed, government is a continuum. Once we accept public office, we also accept responsibility for the institution we lead.
‘Where we discover that something was not done properly, our duty is to acknowledge it, correct it and ensure that future processes are strengthened. Ultimately, the Nigerian people should benefit from improved governance.’
Speaking while interacting with reporters after the session, Oyedele called for collaboration across levels to ensure the success of the SSI.
‘There are responsibilities at the state level and responsibilities at the Federal Government level. Within the Federal Government, different institutions are involved, including the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Education, the Nigeria Police Force, the Department of State Services and other security agencies,’ he said.
Oyedele disagreed with the notion of budgeting or where it is domiciled as the most important issue in the execution of the programme.
He explained, ‘The real issue is not who controls the budget. In government, there are statutory arrangements. Certain funds, such as service-wide votes and intervention funds, are legally administered by the Ministry of Finance because it serves as the government’s financial manager through the Office of the Accountant-General.’
According to him, the priority should be ensuring timely funding for security interventions.
‘What matters most is ensuring that adequate resources are made available and released on time. Timely funding helps prevent attacks rather than forcing government into damage-control after tragedies have occurred,’ he added.
He cautioned that no amount of funding alone could completely eliminate insecurity.
‘There is no guarantee that even unlimited resources would eradicate insecurity entirely. However, adequate and timely funding can significantly reduce risks and strengthen preventive measures.’