Reported by: Ijeoma G | Edited by: Oravbiere Osayomore Promise.
The Zamfara State Government has ordered a two-week extension of the resumption date for all public and private schools across the state, following a health advisory on the prevailing diphtheria outbreak that has claimed dozens of lives in the region. The Commissioner for Education, Science and Technology, Abdulmalik Abubakar Gajam, announced the decision in a public notice issued on Sunday, September 13, 2026, stating that schools will now resume on Monday, September 28, 2026, subject to confirmation with the approved academic calendar. The extension applies to all public and private primary and secondary schools, and school proprietors, heads of schools, and management boards have been directed to comply with the new date.
The Ministry of Education, Science and Technology said the extension was necessary to allow health and education authorities to strengthen disease surveillance, contact tracing, vaccination verification, public sensitisation, and other preventive measures before schools reopen. The ministry also encouraged schools to use the additional period to thoroughly clean and decontaminate their premises and ensure the availability of adequate hand-washing facilities. Parents and guardians were urged to cooperate with health authorities on vaccination, screening, and other recommended preventive measures, while the ministry said it would continue to work closely with the Ministry of Health and other stakeholders to provide further guidance as necessary. The state government appealed to parents, teachers, school owners, traditional institutions, local government councils, and other education stakeholders for their understanding and cooperation in ensuring a safe and healthy learning environment for children.
The decision to extend the resumption date comes as the diphtheria outbreak continues to spread across northern Nigeria. The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention has identified eight states—Kano, Kaduna, Katsina, Borno, Bauchi, Plateau, Sokoto, and Zamfara—as accounting for 98 per cent of all confirmed diphtheria cases in the country. In Zamfara alone, at least 39 cases have been reported, and the state has recorded fatalities, though the exact death toll has not been officially consolidated. The outbreak has prompted a wave of school closures across the region, with Plateau State ordering the temporary shutdown of all public and private primary and secondary schools from September 7 as part of its own containment measures. The situation has been attributed to a significant immunity gap built up over years of low vaccination coverage, particularly in Kano, Katsina, and Zamfara.
Diphtheria is a highly contagious bacterial infection that primarily affects the throat and upper airways, and can be fatal if not treated promptly. It spreads through respiratory droplets and close contact, making schools, with their crowded classrooms and close interactions, particularly vulnerable environments for transmission. The decision to keep schools closed for an additional two weeks is a recognition of this risk, but it also raises difficult questions about the broader state of Nigeria's public health infrastructure. The outbreak has exposed the consequences of years of underinvestment in routine immunisation, weak disease surveillance systems, and limited public health outreach in rural communities. While the Zamfara State Government's decision to delay school resumption is a prudent and necessary step to protect children, teachers, and their families, it also serves as a stark reminder that the outbreak itself could have been prevented if the country's vaccination architecture had been stronger.
As schools across Zamfara remain shut for another two weeks, parents, teachers, and students are left to grapple with the disruption to the academic calendar and the uncertainty of what comes next. The state government has promised to provide further guidance as the situation evolves, and health authorities are working to trace contacts, verify vaccination status, and sensitise communities on prevention. But for the families of those who have already lost loved ones to diphtheria, the extension of the school resumption date is a painful reminder of a crisis that should never have reached this point.
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