UNESCO earmarks N32bn to tackle drug abuse, bullying in schools

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation has announced an allocation of N32bn to enhance and develop the skills of 8,888 teachers across the country.

It said the project is to ensure that teachers have the necessary skills and resources to effectively train children, positively influence them, and develop life skills which will in turn stop drug abuse and bullying in schools.

The Head of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, Abuja office, Abdourahamane Diallo, made the announcement at a stakeholders engagement in preparation for a national training for schools in Nigeria to combat bullying and drug abuse, a statement on Saturday read.

Three months ago, the video of a bullying incident at Lead British International School, Abuja, went viral, which eventually drew the attention of the authorities and the shutting down of the school for a few days. In the video, the victim, identified as Maryam Hassan, was seen being hit repeatedly by another female student for no reason.

School bullying refers to aggressive behaviour that is intentional and involves an imbalance of power or strength, occurring repeatedly over time. A 2023 study in Edo state by Ighaede-Edwards et al found that 51.9 per cent of students experienced bullying, with 27.9 per cent admitting to bullying others.

The UNESCO head, proffering solutions, stated that teachers will be dispatched to various states across Nigeria to raise awareness among adolescents and children to curb bullying among students and drug abuse prevalent among youths.

Diallo represented by National Project Officer Education for Health and Well-being, Oladeji Adeyemi said, “The case of drug abuse is prevalent in Nigeria. So, what we do is to train teachers, and investigate and disseminate information related to drug abuse and bullying in society. We only build capacities but, don’t implement them. We provide finances and other materials to combat bullying and drug abuse.”

He added that drug abuse engenders violence and bullying which has caused a lot of problems and led many out of school, and stated that school-related gender-based violence is critical.

He also advised that schools should provide safe spaces to enable students to speak out when they are being bullied.

“We currently have an N32bn project focused on capacity building to train free teachers to carry out the task in some states in Nigeria. These teachers will visit different schools and organize programs to disseminate information and inculcate knowledge to lecturers and other teachers, as well as, help train students in skills acquisition programs.

“We have supported the government of Nigeria to help build a Code of Conduct in schools which focuses on drug abuse and bullying in schools. We are working with the Ministry of Education/SUBEB against the menace of drug abuse and bullying ravaging our educational system. We urge the government to team up with other agencies in the fight against drug abuse and bullying”, Diallo said.

On her part, the Founder, Future Focus Foundation, Chevonne Jibromah, posited that stakeholders must come together to combat bullying and drug abuse before it eats deep into the lives of young persons in the country.

“To me, bullying is not emphasised enough as a problem and it’s a problem. A vibrant child, all of a sudden, becomes dull and uninterested in going to school. It affects them mentally and if not checked on time, it will eat deep into our schools.

“That is why we need to sit up early to bring preventive measures. With this, we can save some who are already victims and those on the verge of being victims”, she stated.

She explained that the teachers’ training is a viable solution to significantly reduce the menace.

“We are hoping for agencies and organisations like NDLEA, UNESCO, and UNICEF to sit together and create robust materials that will be passed to all these states for training.

“We’ll train a few and get them to go back and train their communities for knowledge to be passed to others. With this, we believe that drug abuse and bullying in our schools in Nigeria will be eradicated”, she added.