Keynote address on Education and National Security

UJAH: Unizik Journal of Arts and Humanities, 2021

This paper discusses how Nigeria as a nation can achieve national security through, not just education, but qualitative education. National security has been described in this paper, as freedom from or resilience against potential harm caused by others. For easy comprehension and assimilation, the paper was strategically broken down into six, (6) distinct sections, to wit; conceptualization of key words, causes of insecurity in Nigeria, effects of insecurity in Nigeria, role of education in checkmating insecurity, previous efforts by governments to address insecurity issues and; conclusion and recommendations. The paper was able to establish the fact that quality education can reduce incidences of insecurity, even if not totally eradicated. Education, this paper revealed is a major weapon of progressive social change. The paper concludes that sound education anchored on good educational policies and implementation can reduce, to a manageable extent, insecurity in Nigeria. Therefore ...

The paper is a critique of Nigeria's educational system as a panacea for curbing the rising spate of insecurity in the country. It observed that the country's present educational system does not accommodate all classes of people in the society. It argued that the wave of insecurity in the country is primarily functions of prevalence poverty, rising rate of unemployment, etc occasioned by a skewed dysfunctional educational system that restricts access to acquisition of requisite functional knowledge and skills for human security through demand-driven education. The study was descriptive in approach and data were gathered from secondary sources through content analysis of relevant documents. It advocated for restructuring the country's educational system to meet immediate and long term needs of all, especially those on the streets without formal entry qualifications, who are most vulnerable and readily available as instruments for violence, insurgency and terrorism against the state. Therefore, institutionalizing National Vocational Qualifications (NVQ), mainstreaming functional synergy amongst the Federal Ministry of Education, National Board for Technical Education, manufacturing sector, etc, in redesigning educational curricular, amongst other measures, will drastically stem tides of insecurity in the country.

INTED2016 Proceedings, 2016

Of recent, especially in the Fourth Republic, Nigeria has been a victim of communal, ethnic and religious violence. The situation has assumed a dangerous scenario with the emergence of Boko Haram terrorist group. In all the violent conflicts, youth has been the cannon fodder in the hand of politicians or religious zealots in fomenting trouble in the land. The reason is premised on the high rate of unemployment among the youth which is a fallout of faulty educational system that renders Nigerian youth unemployable in the labour market. The economic predicament of the Nigerian youth has made them ruthless in crimes. Using system theory, the paper examines Nigeria's education visa -vis national security. The paper maintains that unless Nigeria's education is reformed in such a manner that will make youth self-reliance, then the end of insecurity perpetrated by youth is not yet in sight. The paper also advocates mass employment provision by government for unemployed youth as a measure to address Nigeria's problem of insecurity.

This study examines the problem of insecurity and its effect on quality education in Nigeria. The level of insecurity in the country has reached its peak hence some schools were permanently shut down in the north-eastern Nigeria, and those that are in operation in other parts of the country are run with utmost uncertainty as to which security challenge might come up at any moment. This paper shall seek to address the issues of security challenges as it affects the peaceful atmosphere in which quality education needs to be communicated. The study reveals poor education as the root cause of insecurity and a significant relationship between inefficacious education and insecurity in association with penury, unemployment, corruption, kidnapping and insurgency in Nigeria. Based on the outcome, the study recommends prioritizing education in the national budget, creation of effective database, halting all sources of corruption, tackling the menace of poverty among the youth and upholding human rights. Key words: Quality education, Boko haram, Kidnapping, Academic performance.

Online Journal by League of Educational Researchers International (LERI), 2022

The fourth republic has witness serious challenges ranging from communal ethnic and religious violence. The situation has witness a dangerous scenario with the emergence of Boko Haram, terrorism, banditry and kidnapping in various geo-political zones of the country. In all the violent and security challenges, youth has been the common fodder in the hands of politicians or religious zealots in tormenting trouble in the country. The idea is premised on the high rate of unemployment among the youth which is a fallout of the faulty educational system that has renders Nigeria youth unemployable in the labour market. The economic predicament of the Nigerian youth has made them ruthless in crimes. The paper asserts that between terrorists, bandits and kidnappers, there is very little difference as one set of activities apparently service the other and has significant impact on education system in the4 country.

EKSU Journal of Education, 2019

One of the overwhelming socio-political challenges of the present-day Nigeria is insecurity and this has manifested itself in alarming dimensions. Like many other nations of the world, irrespective of the level of development, Nigeria is faced by a plethora of security challenges. The individual who feels safe feels happy in his/her environment, and he/she is in a position to be productive and live his or her natural life. Consequently, the concept of security has an important status for humans as they need to live in peace and be free from threats to peaceful coexistence. In the wake of the devastating havoc of the Second World War on people and the end of the cold war, there have been a number of attempts by scholars and policy makers to look at the issue of security more critically beyond its state-centric perspective and shift its conceptualization to a wider view that places premium on individuals, a view in which human security which embodies elements of national security, human rights and national development becomes a focal point. This underscores the need for the development of security awareness through the teaching and learning of values and building positive attitudes about security among students through curricula and school activities. This paper explores the close relation that security has with education along the lines of the estimation of the attendant prevalence of security and stability in the society in the event of an increased instilling of moral values in the hearts of students. This leads to an examination of the interplay between security education and education security with a view to channelling the point of intersection towards a discourse on threats in schools, aims of security education, challenges with the Nigerian curriculum of security education as they relate to implementation, and most lastly, the way forward.

First International Conference on Education (SSI1stICE), 2016

T he deprivation of the national development of many countries that has been under threats of it people's physical and structural safety, forced displacements, access to health and education, political freedom and democracy lies on the shoulder of human security. It is needed in response to the complexity and the interrelatedness of both old and new security threats-from chronic and persistent poverty to ethic violence, human trafficking, climate change, health pandemics, terrorism, and sudden economic and financial downturns. Mostly, this threats possessed dynamic dimension which tend to move beyond traditional notions of security in an integrated manner. It is also one of the foundational conditions of being human, including both (1) sustainable protection and provision of the material conditions for meeting the embodied needs of the people, and (2) the protection of the variable existential conditions for maintaining a dignified life. It is maintained that human security placed it attention to individuals living in a particular nation, regardless of gender, race, religion, ethnicity, citizenship, or other distinguishing characteristics. Human security should be achieved-but how?-Through education. Education is considered to be the basic human right. There is a strong connection between the goals of human security and those of education. For many people, elementary education is the very first step to security, employment, political participation and enjoyment of legal rights, thereby raising awareness about human rights and also preventing old and new threats posed to human security. This study will discuss education as the basic for achieving maximum human security in Nigeria.

IKENGA INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF INSTITUTE OF AFRICA STUDIES, 2024

The protection of lives and property remains the cardinal responsibility of the government and the hallmark for the existence of critical sectors like education, health, social infrastructure and the entire economy. However, the Nigerian state has experienced an increasing rate of internal insecurity in the Northeastern part of Nigeria, which has significantly negatively impacted the basic education sub-sector between 2014 and 2020 in the Northeast despite the government's efforts to fight insecurity. These internal security challenges have led to the destruction of schools and the abduction of secondary school students and teachers by bandits and Boko Haram in Northeast Nigeria. Systems theory was adopted as the theoretical framework for this study. The expository qualitative method of inquiry was used for data collection, which entails the in-depth acquisition of documentary material, and the data was analysed using the content analysis technique. The study found, among others, that accessibility and affordability of basic education have retrogressed due to the insecurity in the Northeast, which undermines the realisation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in education by 2030. To curb these challenges, the study recommends that the Federal Ministry of Education, in collaboration with the government of Northeastern states, should recruit and train armed education marshals to offer security surveillance in schools.

Mediterranean Journal of Social Sciences, 2015

The sustainability of a political system depends on a complex of interactions and relationships of its components. The components and the structures of the system do not only help in boundary-maintenance but contribute to its development. This is applicable in Nigeria as the country is currently facing security challenges. In every geo-political zone in the country, security challenges abound; militancy in the Niger Delta, kidnapping in the South East, ritual killing in the South West and insurgency in the North. This demands that all hands must be on deck to curtail the challenges. It is consequent upon this that the authors examined the role of the educators, parents and students in the face of security challenges in Nigeria. Secondary source of data collection was adopted as our methodology. Through this method, explanatory and deductive analysis was made. The authors, therefore, submitted that what is needed mostly at this stage in our national life is less of talk, more of actions. All stakeholders should begin to act.

IJIET (International Journal of Indonesian Education and Teaching)

The issue of Boko Haram and Banditry insurgency has been characterized by the killing, of people, abduction of school children, kidnapping for ransom, army robbery, raping, rustling of cows, destruction of houses, schools, mosques, churches, markets, security posts, health care centers, and farms has become a great security problem in northeast and northwest, Nigeria. The issue has resulted in a waste of peoples’ lives and livelihoods in the two geopolitical zones. The researchers believe that Boko haram insurgency and banditry security issues in Nigeria can be better addressed through Non-formal Education options. This study, therefore, examined how non-formal education can be explored to end insecurity challenges in the northeast and northwest Nigeria. The researchers used the Google database to get relevant journal papers. The prism technique was used to get and extract data based on the known inclusion and exclusion criteria. According to the analysis, non-formal education optio...