Insecurity in the Tillabéri region of western Niger has forced the closure of 579 schools since the start of the year. A report by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said persistent threats from suspected elements of non-state armed groups operating west of Tillabéri, in the areas bordering Burkina Faso and Mali, had caused significant population movements and many pupils had dropped out of school, most of whom were forced to flee their villages with their parents.

The Tillabéri region now registered 9,833 displaced pupils, according to the report. It said in 2020, 377 schools were closed across the region, affecting more than 30,000 children. The report said that of the 13 departments in the region, eight were directly affected.

As a result, throughout the region, authorities estimated that 579 of the 2,247 schools had closed and that a total of 53,562 children, including 25,828 girls, were being deprived of the right to education because of activities linked to armed groups.

Threats to school security were particularly acute in the regions of Tillabéri, Tahoua and Diffa, according to the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF).

“Attacks on schools, students and teachers are a denial of children’s right to education and threaten their future. Without access to education, a generation of children living in conflict will grow up without the skills they need to contribute to their country and economy, exacerbating the already desperate situation for millions of children and their families,” said Stefano Savi, UNICEF’s  representative in Niger.

Since 2017 there had been an increase in the number of attacks by non-state armed groups, suspected of operating out of northern Mali.

Faced with the resurgence of these attacks, the government of Niger had established a state of emergency throughout the region.