Bullying killing school enrollment

•Stakeholders offer solutions at  anti-coercion summit

From Fred Ezeh, Abuja

Bullying has been officially identified as one of the key factors responsible for the poor basic school enrolment,  contributing to the growing number of out-of-school children in Nigeria.

Nigeria has over 10 million out-of-school children and is growing, accounting for the highest number of out-of-school children in the world. At the 66th National Council on Education (NCE), in Abuja, in 2022, former Minister of Education, Malam Adamu Adamu, admitted that he could not solve some challenges in the education sector despite being the longest serving Education Minister.

He said from out-of-school children which, he agreed, increased during his time in office, to repeated academic disruptions in the tertiary institutions due to industrial actions by university lecturers under the umbrella of Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), and other challenges bedeviling the tertiary education system, that he could not provide the needed and expected solutions.

He, however, accused the states’ ministries of education of adding significantly to the factors that aided his failure, particularly in resolving the issue of out-of-school children: “Most of our policies at the federal level pulled many children out of the street back to the school, but evidently, the actions of the states government pushed the children back to the street.

“Someone called my attention to the fact that I am the longest serving Minister of Education in Nigeria. But it never occurred to me, and I never cared whether I was the longest or shortest serving minister.

“My worry was that I came to the office as Minister of Education seven years ago to tackle myriad of issues confronting the education system, particularly the issue of out-of-school children. Unfortunately, I failed to achieve the expectations. For seven years, I was unable to tackle the issue of out-of-school children and several other challenges in the education sector.

“But there are several other factors that contributed to that failure. But the key one, probably, has to do with Commissioners of Education in the states. In 2016, I developed the ministerial strategic plan for the education sector, and as required, I presented the document to the Federal Executive Council (FEC) requesting that state of emergency be declared on education particularly at the lower levels. Decision could not be taken on it because education is in concurrent legislative list, and such interventions, particularly at the lower level, are strictly the responsibility of the states government.

“The President asked me to direct the memo to the National Economic Council (NEC), and I did as directed. My thoughts were that if the Council bought into the idea, being that its members are state governors, it would have just been a national decision, and the expected objective would be achieved.

“I made the presentation three times, but the expected action, which is the state of emergency, was not declared on the education sector.”

Recently, stakeholders in the education sector gathered in Abuja for the national stakeholders summit on bullying prevention and support with ministers, lawmakers, school proprietors, educators, civil society organisations, NYSC members, students and other relevant stakeholders in attendance.

Senior Special Assistant to the President on Students Engagement, Sunday Asefon, told the gathering that the summit was in response to the outcome of surveys conducted by his office in collaboration with other stakeholders on the nexus between bullying and rising cases of out-of-school children:

“The research clearly revealed that bullying is one of the key factors responsible for the rising cases of the out-of-school children as well as poor learning outcomes. The bullying is not experienced in schools, as children also witnessed bullying in homes, religious places, and other places of social gathering.

“Parents, teachers, community and religious leaders,  and individuals should rise to control the rising menace of bullying among the children and even adults. In Nigeria today, bullying, whether physical, verbal, psychological, or online has become a destructive force, and had undermined mental health, disrupted academic performance, and threatened the safety of our learning environments.

“It is no longer a series of isolated incidents or unfortunate elements of school culture, but a national challenge demanding a unified, multi-sectoral response.

“This summit, themed ‘unite against bullying: a multi-stakeholder approach to legislative and social change’, speaks to both our shared vision and collective action required across government institutions, educational systems, communities, and digital platforms to ensure that every child and student feels protected, valued, and empowered.”

Efforts against bullying

Minister of State for Education, Prof. Suwaiba Ahmad, lamented the dangerous effects of bullying on the physical and mental health of children in schools: “This was the reason we developed a National Anti-bullying Policy document which was recently launched in Abuja.

“The document was designed to provide a guide on managing the issue of bullying and also offer protection to students against all forms of bullying. It is a threat to learners and many children have lost interest in school/education because of the bullying experiences.

“This is completely unacceptable to the government and the society at general. Bullying is not a normal part of school life but a serious issue with long-lasting emotional and psychological effects. The National Anti-bullying Policy document contains recommendations on how best to tackle the evolving bullying, particularly in the digital spaces which is on the increase due to increased access to digital tools.

“Bullying is a destructive behaviour that can devastate students’ well-being. As a nation, we have a collective responsibility to ensure our schools are safe and supportive.”

Minister of Youth Development, Ayodele Olawande, recommended that  campaign against bullying be taken down to the rural areas targeting all levels of the education system starting with primary schools.

He assured the youths that “government is committed to any cause that would herald improved opportunities for them, urging them to buy into the activities of the government that was designed to better their lives.”

Minister of State for Humanitarian Affairs, Tanko Sununu, challenged the youths to rise to change the fortune of Nigeria by avoiding unhealthy characters. He emphasised the critical role of collective action, particularly commending the mobilisation of parents and community members to the summit:

“Bullying is a form of repeated aggressive behaviour often involving an imbalance of power. It takes many forms, notably, physical, verbal, social, or digital, and each form leaves scars, often invisible but deeply damaging.

“Verbal and cyberbullying are on the rise, leading to long-term consequences such as depression, anxiety, suicidal ideation, and social withdrawal among victims. Mental health is now a national concern, and we must treat bullying as one of its root causes.”

A student participant said: “Enough is enough, no child should suffer in silence, neither should parents be afraid to send their children to school due to signs and cases of bullying.

“This is not just a summit. It is a national call to action. The beginning of a movement where Nigeria boldly declares: We will no longer tolerate bullying. We will protect. We will support. We will reform. So, let us stand together now and always unite against bullying.”