The Nigerian Senate has extended the lifespan of its ad hoc committee probing the Safe Schools Initiative by three weeks and significantly broadened the scope of the investigation.
On Tuesday, the Red Chamber approved the inclusion of key agencies, the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund), Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC), Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, and the National Social Investment Programme Agency (NSIPA) in the ongoing inquiry.
The expansion aims to deliver a comprehensive review of funding, implementation, and accountability mechanisms for education and social intervention programmes linked to student safety and welfare across Nigeria.
Senator Orji Uzor Kalu (APC, Abia North), Chairman of the Ad Hoc Committee on the Safe Schools Initiative, moved the motion for the extension and expanded terms of reference.
He argued that issues of school security, educational infrastructure, and social interventions are deeply interconnected.
“Investigating the Safe Schools Initiative without reviewing these complementary bodies will result in fragmented legislative oversight,” Kalu stated.
He emphasised that a wider probe would enhance accountability, protect students, and improve transparency in the management of intervention funds.
Under the new mandate, the committee will examine financial flows, operational challenges, and efficiency across the agencies.
This includes TETFund’s infrastructure and security projects in tertiary institutions, NELFUND’s loan disbursement processes and student access, UBEC’s basic education interventions, and social safety nets such as school feeding and emergency relief programmes.
The Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, put the motion to a voice vote, and it was unanimously approved. The committee now has three additional weeks to complete its work and submit a report.
The ad hoc committee was originally inaugurated in December 2025 amid persistent attacks on schools despite substantial government and donor funding for the Safe Schools Initiative, launched in 2014 following the Chibok schoolgirls abduction.
The probe has already scrutinised billions of naira released for the programme, including ₦15 billion in 2023, and raised questions over fund utilisation and financial irregularities.
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