Abia Beefs Up Security At Schools

As the 2025/2026 academic session kicked off on Monday in Abia State, the government inaugurated a Safe Schools Steering Committee to ensure security in schools.

This comes as it is set to embark on shortlisting successful candidates from 28,213 applicants who applied for the second batch of the teachers’ recruitment exercise in the state.

The Commissioner for Information, Okey Kanu, made this known while briefing the press on the conduct of the Executive Council meeting chaired by Governor Alex Otti in Umuahia, the state capital.

He explained that the move was necessitated by recurring insecurity across the country, as the administration remains proactive in preventing rather than reacting to threats.

In his words: “This is in response to the growing need to safeguard educational institutions in the state, following emerging security concerns around the country.

“During the inauguration, it was highlighted that the committee will serve as a multi-sectoral strategic platform to coordinate state-level implementation of the Safe Schools Declaration.”

The commissioner announced that two smart schools would be ready for commissioning in February, as work is progressing as anticipated on the state’s smart school projects.

Regarding the applicants, he said the verification of their submissions is being concluded, after which they would sit for the Computer-Based Tests, with successful candidates proceeding to interviews.

“It is important to recall that the government plans to recruit an additional 4,000 teachers from this exercise to complement the 5,394 employed last year,” he added.