The Bauchi State Government, under the leadership of Governor Bala Mohammed, has ordered the closure of all public and private schools across the state for five weeks to observe the 2025 Ramadan fasting period, a decision that has triggered strong reactions from Christian private school operators and some parents.
According to the state’s approved 2024/2025 academic calendar, schools were scheduled to close on March 1 and remain shut until April 5, with academic activities resuming on April 6. The closure affects nursery, primary, secondary, and even tertiary institutions across the state. State officials maintain that the break was incorporated into the academic calendar months before Ramadan began and was designed to allow students to observe the holy month without the demands of regular school activities.
The Ministry of Education, through its Information Officer, Jalaludeen Maina, defended the decision, stating that the extended holiday had been approved long before the commencement of the school session and was intended to ensure that students would not have to combine classroom activities with fasting.
Christian Schools Reject Directive
However, the directive has been met with stiff opposition from Christian faith-based private schools, which argue that the blanket closure disregards the state’s religious diversity and infringes on the rights of schools and students who do not observe Ramadan.
The aggrieved schools contend that while they respect the significance of Ramadan to Muslims, no government directive should compel every school to suspend learning solely on religious grounds. They argue that parents who wish to keep their children in school during the period should be allowed to do so.
According to a source familiar with the matter, this is not the first time Bauchi has introduced such a policy.
“We have gone through something similar before, and we set up a committee that met with the Commissioner for Education, who eventually relaxed the directive,” the source said.
The source added that, unlike previous years, the state government has insisted that all schools—both public and private—must comply with this year’s closure.
Appeal to CAN
Concerned by the development, a coalition of Christian faith-based schools in Bauchi has written to the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), seeking intervention.
In a letter signed by Musa Bogoro Zakka, former Chairman of the Private School Owners Association in Bauchi Local Government and the 2015 Bauchi State Chairman of the National Association of Proprietors of Private Schools, the group expressed concern over the implications of the academic calendar.
The letter stated that all nursery, primary and secondary schools—whether privately or publicly owned—were directed to suspend academic activities throughout Ramadan.
The group also revealed that they were initially informed that CAN had been involved in consultations leading to the adoption of the calendar. However, following growing concerns from Christian school proprietors, they requested an audience with the association to discuss possible solutions and seek advocacy on behalf of affected schools.
Back Story
The controversy extends beyond religious concerns. Education advocates and parents have also questioned the timing and length of the closure, noting that Bauchi is among the Nigerian states with one of the country’s highest numbers of out-of-school children. Some parents fear that a five-week interruption could negatively affect learning, especially for students preparing for external examinations, while others worry it may encourage absenteeism and learning loss. The debate has since evolved into a broader conversation about balancing religious observance with the constitutional right to education in a religiously diverse society.
