The Incentive-Based Program (IBP) of Policy House International has said the Kandara school kidnap is a minus in the steps to return pupils to the classrooms in the North East.
Citing the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) report that 10.5 million children are currently out of school and needed to return, Executive Director of IBP, Taiwo Akerele, described the kidnap as a setback in their quest to build confidence in the educational environment in the region through the incentive framework.
Minister of Women Affairs, Pauline Tallen, has condemned the kidnap, describing it as wicked, abominable and unacceptable.
In a statement yesterday, she lamented that it was beyond shocking to hear that young students, who went to pursue a brighter future through education, were viciously attacked by gunmen.
UNICEF also expressed concern over the incident.
The Regional Director for West and Central Africa, Marie-Pierre Poirier, stated on Sunday that the incident was “violation of children’s right.”
Marie-Pierre said that according to unconfirmed reports, hundreds of students were still unaccounted for.
“UNICEF condemns in the strongest possible terms this brutal attack and calls for the immediate and unconditional release of all children and their return to their families.
“Attacks on schools are a violation of children’s rights and international humanitarian law. This is a grim reminder that abductions of children and widespread grave violations of children’s rights continue to take place in northern Nigeria,” she added.
