Quality education and violent conflicts in Nigeria, by Tijjani Muhammad-Bande - 21st CENTURY CHRONICLE (2024)

Preamble

I am delighted to participate in some of the activities for the 9th – 13th combined convocation ceremony of UMYU, Katsina, and for the honour of giving the pre-convocation lecture. I congratulate the Governor as Visitor, the Pro-Chancellor, the Vice-Chancellor and Management, staff and students and the entire university community for this important achievement. My association with this university is long; but I will spare you the details, only to affirm my great joy in being here.

II. Introducing the Problem

There have been decades-long debates concerning the challenges of peace and development in Nigeria. This has gained more urgency in the last decade and a half, owing largely to terrorism, banditry, kidnap-for-ransom and cattle rustling, among other criminal activities affecting the country. These have further worsened the peace and development situation in the country. While Boko Haram terrorism, which started around 2009 in the north-east, was substantially degraded and territories they controlled were retaken by Nigeria by 2016, elements of the terrorist group started making common cause with criminal elements in the north-west. The later emerged in Zamfara state and spread quickly into especially Katsina and Kaduna States, northern parts of Sokoto state, and Niger state.

With this terrible situation persisting for this long, indices of development, including school enrolment and scholastic achievement, began a downward trend. Closure of schools and dispersal of staff and students become common. This deepened and spread hunger, malnutrition and poverty. People got sicker. This particularly portends danger for not only peace and harmony in the country, but also for development and human rights.

We are faced with a dynamic situation and the data are changing. In addition, methodologies of data collection vary with sources. Yet, reading contemporary accounts, as given by witnesses and victims, what emerges is a grim picture of the depravity of the criminals who appear to live in a world devoid of morals, whatever their claims to the contrary are. Wanton killings, arson, rape, sexual slavery, forced labour have been credibly reported to have widely occurred. Individuals, families and communities have been pauperized and traumatized due to cattle rustling and the extortionist demands for large sums of money from relatives and loved ones of those held in cruel captivity. The socio-economy of many communities, even states, have changed for the worst. There are risks to people going to their farms and markets, to schools and even places of worship. Easier targets in isolated locations have suffered the most. Many have moved to already crowded towns and cities, turned into beggars with their dignity tarnished.

A UNDP report states that in Borno, Adamawa and Yobe states alone, there were some 35,000 deaths due to direct action of Boko Haram between 2009 and 2020, with an estimated number of deaths due to indirect causes of up to 314,000. The same report gave 15,000 as the number of schools destroyed, with 1,200 staff and students dead. The number of abductions, including those from the girl’s school in Chibok, was over 400 students. In addition, the terrorism of Boko Haram saw to the closure of thousands of schools and the conversion of some into temporary internally displaced persons (IDP) camps, with death of 2,300 teachers, with some 19,000 displaced. Abductions, especially of women and girls, became rampant from 2018.

Sadly, as the insurgency of Boko Haram was dissipating due to the sustained pressure by government, leading especially to the dislodgement of Boko Haram as de facto rulers of in all areas hitherto under their control, violent banditry, which sprang in Zamfara state in 2011, spread very rapidly into Katsina, Kaduna and some parts of Sokoto states. The illegal and forced taxation added to the earlier-mentioned criminal activities hastened the closure of schools in a region where school enrolment was lagging behind. Indeed, estimates are of over 5.5 million out-of-school children in the north western states (Kano, Kaduna, Kebbi, Zamfara, Sokoto, Jigawa and Katsina) and their North eastern counterparts (Adamawa, Borno, Bauchi, Gombe, Yobe and Taraba) out of the over 10 million out-of-school children in Nigeria. So, any disturbance to the peace has the effect of making the situation ever more dire.

Again, soft targets were under sustained attack. From primary to secondary schools, to tertiary educational institutions, nothing was sacrosanct and exempted from violence. Between 2014 and 2023, 680 school children were kidnapped, 180 of whom lost their lives in over 70 attacks. In addition, 60 staff were kidnapped, 14 of whom were killed.

The response was becoming almost standardized – closure of schools and deboarding of students from many boarding schools.

III. The Place of Education In Society

Debates about what education is, and how best to guarantee it, have raged for thousands of years. Recently a work edited by H. Sissing and others brought some of that to light. It is the admirable 4000 Years of Thinkers on Education (Boom, Amsterdam, 2020). Within it, some have emphasized the nurturing of minds and the refinement of values, others the more practical outcomes of education in relation to work.

Regardless of how education is perceived, the general view is that it is a public good par excellence; and it is key to the progress of humankind. Today the explosion of technology as represented by Artificial Intelligence (A.I) alone, is a testimony enough about the utility to human progress of education. Any form of diminution of educational progression portends the opposite. Indeed, there is truth in the observation by D. Glinos that:
“The state of education at any given time – its structure and curricula, the quality of the teaching provided and the ideology governing it – is both cause and effect of the expansion or decline in the economy, social mores, the arts, sciences and the political regime” (quoted in ‘Henk Sissing et al, op cit, p 29).

There has been marked tension over the issue of whether education is mainly for nurturing the mind or the soul versus the more practical matter of work or earning a living. This is in some sense unnecessary if one takes the view that work itself is ennobling and an expression of freedom, so long as it is not alienated labour. The poet, philosopher and artist Kahlil Gibran is one of many who tried to integrate the two perspectives. In his, “ on Work” ( K. Gibran: The Prophet, Alfred A. Knopt, New York, 72nd printing, 2021, pp25 – 28,) he states, in part:

“Always you have been told that work is a curse and labour a misfortune…………………………………………………………………
You have been told also that life is darkness, and in your weariness, you echo what is said by the weary………………………………………………………
And I say that life is indeed darkness save when there is urge,
And urge is blind save when there is knowledge,
And knowledge is vain save when there is work,
And all knowledge is empty save when there is love;
And when you work with love you bind yourself to yourself, and to one another, and to God”

We wish to suggest that both types of knowledge or skills are ennobling and connected to virtue. No unnecessary hierarchy need be imposed here.
It is this appreciation of the importance of education that explains why countries cooperate and collaborate with others to continually improve it for themselves and for the world. It provides the intellectual prowess to understand the dynamics of power and commerce, as well as war and peace, around the world. It ensures the smooth functioning of the bureaucracy, including its military component. Nigeria is a member of many regional and global protocols and agreements in favour of education, including at the United Nations. At the United Nations, Nigeria, in consenting to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in 2015, has also agreed to equitable quality education, Goal 4. Furthermore, the provision of education is one of the directive principles of state policy, as part of the Constitution of Nigeria, 1999 as amended. Nigeria’s educational leaders aligned education with the vision of the Country’s Constitution to:
a) Live in unity and harmony as one invisible nation found on the principles of freedom, equality and justice; and
b) Promote inter-African solidarity and world peace through understanding.

Education is to support the building and attainment of five national goals, namely:
A free and democratic society,
A just and egalitarian society,
A united, serving and self-reliant nation,
A great and dynamic economy and
A land full of bright opportunities for all citizens.

Nigeria’s National Policy on Education (NPE) wrapped itself fully within the national vision. Given this, any constituent part of Nigeria that lags behind in education is in some way missing in the obligations of citizenship. In practical terms, this has a tendency overtime to lead into losing rights of citizenship. This must be at least one compelling reason not to abandon children and youths, or even adults, who are faced with violent and criminal acts. Everything possible should be done to educate all citizens.

Iv. Where Should UMYU Students Stand on This Matter?

Students are major stakeholders in the search for solutions to this unfolding tragedy. They are neither minors, nor bystanders. In this collective enterprise for knowledge generation, skills acquisition, and character moulding, they are a major reason why the university exists in the first place. They can offer advice and act also on ways to stabilize and secure their university and lower-level schools. They must think hard and develop the kind of resilience that tells those who seek to scuttle the transmission of knowledge, both intergenerationally and vertically, that students are opposed to them. It is this necessary socialization that agents of destruction are targeting because with it, there can never be long stretches of darkness. Being a student is a privilege, but never has it been an easy one. Ask any elder. Admittedly, we have not seen this toxic combination of factors so brazenly facing you. You must resolve to overcome. All levels of government and people of goodwill around the world are behind you. This criminal brigandage will be defeated. Develop a habit of looking beyond just the immediate situation and embrace a long-term view of things, in addition.

Second, you will do well not to fall into the easy trap of conspiracy theories, those pushing you to believe, based on either no evidence or flimsy conjunctures, that some groups elsewhere at home or abroad are behind all your travails. This is a recipe for deepening the disaster. It is as diversionary as it is dangerous. Professional security and intelligence officials will deal with any such situation if the destabilisation of the peace and the noisy drum beats of war are afoot. Our politicians have numerous encumbrances in relation to governance issues; nonetheless, on this matter, they are in favour of national unity. So are our traditional rulers; so must we all be.

Indeed, even if there were some evidence of some people trying to cause mayhem in these areas most affected by violent conflicts, the best thing to do would be to fight whoever is openly involved. There is no need to go on endless fishing expeditions. Furthermore, for the most part, the terrorists and bandits are known. Their relations are known. Their histories are known. We speak to them. They send videos about their despicable acts. So, please avoid the narrative of self-pity and embrace positive action for normalcy.

Third, it is well worth reminding that, at great cost to the state, this institution was established to cater to the needs of the state and, with it, the nation. It is already the single most important source of manpower for Katsina State. You should play your part in the continuation of this legacy. Read hard. Learn well. Join networks desirous of making a positive mark on Katsina State and further afield. Do not think the alternative, despair leading to a fatalistic resignation, is a noble choice.

Those who have already scaled all the hurdles placed upon those seeking degrees at UMYU must know that we are all watching to see if our collective sacrifice to get you where you are, has paid dividends. We have a right as parents, as teachers, as taxpayers, as community leaders, as your relatives and as compatriots, to always expect good behaviour and a willingness to act in the public interest from all graduates of UMYU. This is regardless of whether you find employment with government, the private sector, or not. Work, any legitimate work, any honest labour through which you earn a living is dignifying. Please do not be so fixated on working only in particular offices. You may well find more fulfilment, including financially, in jobs you never expected to be in. We pray that God gives you all you require to do what is right. Ameen!

V. Why Bother with Education in the Face of Conflict? A Reminder

Much of what we have sketched above provided a sense of the prime importance of education for individuals and societies, without which things of value cannot be obtained and improved upon.

For Muslims, the injunction “READ” was the first divine directive. Whether in peacetime or in its absence, the injunction remains valid. The only thing is the deployment of best efforts to do so under any circ*mstances. Furthermore, the religion of Islam recommends the “planting of a tree,” even if that is one’s final act in life. This is a clear appreciation of the need to take care of the interests of those coming after us, the next generation. I suspect it cannot be different for other religions. It is too far-fetched to suppose that with our better education, this obligation is even more pertinent? We have every means of knowing how a gap in education provision from one generation to the next can spell disaster.

I am certain that many of us in this room have pondered over what we ought to do under these circ*mstances: insurgency, banditry, climate change, moral decay, the explosion of new technologies, and so on. I am also certain most of us have not given in to complacency. We must work with others to secure a better future for ourselves, our communities, our states, and our country. Indeed, for our world. I am glad to come across the world of an academic at Oxford, William MacAskill, who reminds us that this is a global challenge, an incessant imperative. I fully agree with him when he observes:

“Distance in time is like distance in space. People matter even if they live thousands of miles away. Likewise, they matter even if they live thousands of years hence. In both cases, it’s easy to mistake distance for unreality, to treat limits of we can see as the limits of the world. But just as the world does not stop at our doorstep or our country’s borders, neither does it stop with our generation, or the next”. (W. MicAskill: What We Owe the Future, Basic Books, New York, 2022 P.10).
We do need to continue the educational enterprise, no matter what, as a guarantee for peace and development.

VI. What is to be Done?

There are many things we can do to improve our chances of ensuring the continuity of quality education provision, even while fighting violent conflicts.
These are necessary if we should achieve peace, human rights, and development.

I am making seven broad recommendations, each of which will require further refinement by more knowledgeable professionals and experts. These are:

1. The federal government needs to send a consistent and clear message that it is fully committed and ready to end violent conflicts and criminality equally in all parts of the country. In doing so, it needs to work cooperatively with all subnational levels of government. In effecting the latter, it should listen and jointly fashion out what works for each location, not discounting the use of local security outfits. Nonetheless, I do not at this stage find the establishment of state police advisable.

2. There needs to be a full-scale review of curricula and means of funding of education. This also presupposes the implementation of some policies, as against just restating lofty ideals of the NPE. Focus on jobs and employability is necessary, without in any way ignoring more abstract endeavours in tertiary institutions. We need both. Yet, and especially for lower-level schools, the imbalance against technical and vocational education needs to be redressed. At least two such schools per local government can be considered, and these should cater to boys and girls.

The veto to advancement exercised by credits in English and Mathematics may require a review. Why would a student who obtained high grades in Physics and Mathematics and who desires to study any of these at tertiary level be discarded until he shows a “credit” in English Language? Evidence that the student was not taking a long nap in class is before us: the high scores in his or her subject of interest. A student keen on studying languages and has aptitude for them may be required to have 5 or more credits. But it makes little sense to continue the colonial hold on the mind, and on ambitions of young men and women, by granting the power of veto English Language and Mathematics. This is in no way disputing the value of these subjects; only urging a balanced view of the matter.

3. There must be adequate and sustained investment by governments for education. A committee or committees to doing this in a non-partisan way should be established. This must cater to infrastructure, teachers’ welfare, and educational materials, among other critical aspects of education.

4. Formalising skills acquired through apprenticeship in thousands of local workshops. Certification and retraining are also important. Professional and regulatory bodies should be reminded to carry out their responsibilities. Such recognition and certification can help advance careers and businesses of those involved. This further assures public confidence in governments and commitments to quality service delivery.

5. Ensuring a minimum budgetary allocation of 17.5% to education by all levels of Government for at least 20 years, regardless of what political party is in power. A firm consensus around this is required.

6. Especially for states most affected by disruptions to education, more sustained efforts at the integration of traditional Islamic schools and more modern ones should be made. We need to live up to our promise of access to quality education for all Nigerians, regardless of family background or other circ*mstance.

7. Philanthropic giving and general support to education should be advocated for and celebrated in our communities. Traditional and religious leaders should join political leaders in urging and monitoring such efforts.
Many other recommendations can reasonably be made. I just offered a few, which, in my view, should help our situation in the short and medium terms.

VII. Conclusion

Violent conflict, including terrorism, banditry, and kidnap-for-ransom, has added major burdens on individuals, families, and communities. The resultant terrible situation has gone on for over a decade and a half. It has negatively impacted every index of development: from healthcare to education, from housing to commence. Efforts at redressing the situation have not been as effective as they should be. In the field of education, as in many other fields, Nigeria has fallen short of its promise to itself and its regional and global partners. The incessant attacks on education, especially severe in many the north-eastern and north-western states, have led to a downward trend in both enrolment and scholastic achievement.

This is making a bad situation worse, with unpalatable implications for peace and development and human rights. The continuation of deficits in educational performance has implications for the rights and obligations of individuals and entities affected. For this and several reasons, priority attention should be accorded the educational needs of those in conflict zones. Education is an enabler for all else, and the most effective leveller in society.

For the country as a whole, there must be a clear resolve, backed by thoughtful actions, to uproot terrorism and banditry. Yielding ground to them cannot be a solution. In looking at the joblessness against the need for skilled labour in many areas (agriculture, manufacturing, industry), some balance in favour of technical and vocational education, among other relevant reviews of either policy or implementation, is required.

Nigeria is an important country that has duties not only to itself but also further afield. It should not give in to desperate elements who advocate for its diminution or fractionalisation. It has experts in all fields of human endeavour, and it should utilise their knowledge and skills to solve its multiple challenges, including in countering terrorism and ensuring access to quality education for all Nigerians whatever their circ*mstances.

I thank you for listening.

The invaluable support of my colleague, Prof. SYB Kura, in the production of this paper is gratefully acknowledged.

Being a Pre-Convocation Lecture on the Occasion of the 9th – 13th Combined Convocation of Umaru Musa Yar’Adua University, Katsina; presented by Ambassador Tijjani Muhammad-Bande of the Department Of Political Science, Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto; on Friday 24th May, 2024 at the University Auditorium, UMYU.