Two months after gunmen stormed St. Mary’s Catholic School, Papiri, in Niger State, teaching and learning have yet to resume, leaving hundreds of students, parents and teachers trapped in uncertainty and fear.
The school, which serves more than 50 communities, has remained locked since the November 21, 2025, abduction of 230 students and teachers, an attack that sent shockwaves through Papiri and surrounding villages. Although all those taken have since been released, the trauma lingers and the classrooms remain empty.
Residents say the situation has been worsened by the January 3 massacre at Kasuwan Daji, barely 15 kilometres from Papiri, where 42 people were killed by terrorists. The incident has deepened anxiety and reinforced concerns about the fragile security architecture in the area.
With the intervention of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the Office of the National Security Adviser, the abducted students and teachers were freed in two batches and handed over to Governor Mohammed Umar Bago on December 8 and December 22, 2025. Before their release, the NSA, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, had visited Kontagora and assured parents that the victims were safe, a reassurance that temporarily calmed tensions.
However, findings indicate that Papiri and neighbouring communities remain dangerously exposed. There is no military base in the area, while the police are said to be poorly equipped, short-staffed and overstretched. About 40 mobile policemen are reportedly responsible for guarding both the village and the school, a number residents say is grossly inadequate against heavily armed bandits.
The absence of military formations in Agwara and Borgu Local Government Areas, north of the Kainji Game Reserve, has further compounded insecurity, with poor coordination among security agencies slowing response to attacks. Locals say bandits now exploit the vacuum, striking communities at will.
As a result, parents fear not only for their children’s safety but also for their future.
“We fear for our children’s lives and education,” said Musa Hassan, a parent. “If this school remains closed, many of our children may never return to the classroom.”
The concern is shared by education stakeholders, who warn that the prolonged closure could worsen Niger State’s already troubling out-of-school figures. UNICEF estimates that Nigeria has 10.5 million children aged between five and 14 out of school, with the northern region recording particularly low attendance rates.
While the Niger State Government announced that schools have resumed in relatively stable areas such as Chanchaga, Bosso, Suleja, Bida and Lapai, schools in the Niger North Senatorial Zone, including Papiri, remain shut due to security threats.
Reacting to the Kasuwan Daji killings, President Tinubu had ordered the security chiefs to go after the perpetrators and restore peace, declaring that the nation must unite to defeat criminal elements. Governor Bago also described the attacks as disturbing, admitting that 2025 was a year of mixed fortunes for the state, marked by development gains and severe security challenges.
The Bishop of Kontagora Diocese and proprietor of St. Mary’s School, Most Rev. Bulus Dsuwa Yohanna, described the persistent insecurity as unacceptable, urging the government to take concrete steps to protect children and restore peace. While appreciating the role of security agencies in securing the release of the abductees, he insisted that lasting solutions were needed.
The school’s principal, Sister Felicia Gyang, echoed the appeal, warning that continued closure risks denying hundreds of children access to education. “We appeal to the federal and state governments to ensure security so that learning can resume,” she said.
Parents and community leaders have also called for the establishment of a military base and joint security outpost in the area, citing the ease with which terrorists attacked and burnt Kasuwan Daji market in broad daylight.
Responding to the concerns, the state Commissioner for Homeland Security, Barrister Maurice Magaji, said efforts were ongoing to stabilise troubled areas but insisted that lives must come before education. He assured that schools would be reopened in phases once calm is restored.
For now, students like Florence Michael and Felicia Musa, who survived the abduction, say they only want one thing: to return safely to school. “If we don’t continue our education, we will be pushed back to the farms and denied a future,” they said.
