Many schools along Nigeria-Benin border are still closed as new academic year starts

On Monday, 14 September, many primary schools in Nigeria and nearby Benin were set to reopen for a new academic year.

But for thousands of children living in vulnerable areas along the borders of both countries, the new school year begins with fear.

In Benin, schools in 10 northern areas stayed closed at the start of the school year because of worries about possible terrorist attacks, according to education officials. Pupils in these areas were sent to schools in safer locations.

The officials did not say how many schools were affected. Parents of some pupils confirmed the move to AFP, while Benin’s government spokesperson, Wilfried Houngbedj, announced the decision earlier. Education officials said the affected areas faced security issues linked to armed groups near the country's borders with Burkina Faso and Niger.

In Nigeria, the situation is similar. More than 20 communities around the Kainji forest corridors that stretch through Niger and Kwara states, and share borders with Benin, are also under increasing security pressure.

Schools in these areas have been targeted by terrorist groups. Mukadas Dindey, a zonal education officer in Borgu LGA, Niger State, told PREMIUM TIMES that nearly all schools in affected villages have been closed since 2025.

He said only schools in the garrison towns of Wawa and New Bussa would start academic activities on 14 September. An official at the Niger State Ministry of Education confirmed this.

"All those schools will remain closed for security reasons," the official, who wanted to stay anonymous, said. "If any community believes it is safe to reopen their school, they will write a letter through their local government chairman to the Ministry of Homeland Security."

The official added that the homeland security ministry will inform security agencies to check if the school is safe to reopen, following the federal government’s safe school initiative.

This situation shows how armed groups in the Sahel are affecting basic services in communities far from traditional conflict zones.

An analysis by the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data (ACLED) found that violent incidents involving jihadist groups in Benin’s Alibori and Borgou departments, Niger’s Dosso region, and Nigeria’s Sokoto, Kebbi, Niger, and Kwara states rose by 86 percent in 2025 compared to 2024. Deaths associated with these incidents increased by 262 percent during the same time.

ACLED reported that the spread of groups linked to al-Qaeda and Islamic State has entered a new phase, with border areas becoming a hotspot for jihadist activity. The data link this to weak state presence, poor border controls, and declining security cooperation in the region.

The Kainji area has seen a number of deadly attacks recently.

In October 2025, this newspaper reported that Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM), an al-Qaeda group, claimed its first attack in Nigeria, further complicating the security situation in the Kainji area where multiple armed groups, including Boko Haram, Ansaru, bandits, and Lakurawa operate.

Nigeria’s Defence Minister, Christopher Musa, has also recognized the changing security situation along the border.

In July, Mr Musa stated that Nigeria was boosting military collaboration with Benin and Niger and creating another military sector to cover the tri-border area.

He said the al-Qaeda-linked JNIM was trying to use routes through Benin into Nigeria.

"We’re opening another sector to cover the border between Nigeria, Benin Republic, and Niger," Mr Musa, a retired general, said.

He added that this plan would give Nigerian forces more freedom to operate in the area.

Both jihadist groups and bandits continue to cause terror, leading to a growing humanitarian crisis across borders.

A few days after a Boko Haram faction led by Mallam Sadiku released captives from Kwara (Woro and Nuku) and Niger (Konkoso, Pissa, Kasuwan Daji and other villages), around 600 Muslim worshippers, including children and women, were kidnapped in Dekara and surrounding villages.

The attack was blamed on Lakurawa, but it's hard to confirm this due to the presence of many armed groups in the area.

For locals, the differences between jihadists, bandits, and other armed groups often become less important when violence disrupts daily life.

Shuaibu Ba, a displaced resident of Dekara, said it is tough to tell which group is which.

"I believe they are all partners and are determined to chase us away from our ancestral homes."

Mr Ba mentioned that schools, farms, markets, and roads are hard to access. He added that teachers are also targeted.

After a deadly November 2025 attack on St Mary’s Catholic School in Papiri, where over 300 students were kidnapped, more schools have faced attacks.

In June, terrorists set Dekera Central Primary School on fire after forcing villagers to pay a N10 million levy.

"Days after they burnt the school, they came back to the community and kidnapped the headmaster," Mr Ba said. "They took him to the forest and killed him."

Data from PREMIUM TIMES shows that mass school abductions have spread beyond the Northeast and Northwest, becoming a national security issue.

In President Bola Tinubu’s first three years in office, Nigeria saw 13 mass school kidnapping incidents involving 674 students and staff, compared to three incidents with at least 120 victims during former President Muhammadu Buhari’s first three years.

This marks a 333 percent increase in incidents and a 462 percent rise in victims.

The data also highlights how the crisis's geography has changed.

Under Buhari, school abductions spread from the Northeast to the Northwest, where armed bandit groups began targeting schools heavily. Under Tinubu, the threat has continued to move south.