Governors in Nigeria’s North say the region is at a crossroads, with insecurity and poverty threatening its stability, and called for urgent action to safeguard the future.
The warning came during a joint meeting of the Northern States Governors’ Forum (NSGF) and the Northern Traditional Rulers Council, hosted in Kaduna by Governor Uba Sani. The two-day summit brought together all 19 Northern governors, traditional rulers, security chiefs, and civil-society groups to craft a coordinated strategy against what the forum described as an “existential” crisis.
Chairman of the NSGF and Gombe State Governor, Muhammadu Yahaya, opened the summit with a sobering declaration that the North faces “the grim reality of insecurity and poverty that seeks to undermine our very existence”. He expressed appreciation to President Bola Tinubu for his “strong leadership and steadfast commitment to Nigeria’s security, sovereignty, and territorial integrity”.
Yahaya condemned the recent mass abductions of schoolchildren in Kebbi, Kwara, Kogi, Kano, Niger, and Sokoto, as well as Boko Haram attacks in Borno and Yobe, extending condolences to affected families. He commended federal efforts that led to the release of some abducted students but urged continued pressure to free those still in captivity.
“Education is the bedrock of our children’s future,” he said. “An attack on education is a direct assault on our future”.
Highlighting the widespread impact of insecurity, Yahaya said the crisis “spares no one,” affecting the rich and poor, Muslims and Christians, young and old. He called on political leaders to resist exploiting ethnic or religious divisions.
He identified underdevelopment, illiteracy, climate change, unemployment, and poor resource management as root causes that must be addressed alongside military responses. He also placed millions of Almajiri and out-of-school children at the center of the discussion, urging “decisive and coordinated actions to put every child in school.”
The forum reaffirmed support for state policing, describing it as “a critical and effective mechanism” for confronting the North’s complex security landscape, and urged the National Assembly to expedite constitutional amendments to actualize the long-demanded reform.
