Boko Haram's abduction of 110 school girls in northeast Nigeria, has prompted fresh fears about safety at schools in Nigeria, nearly four years after a similar kidnapping led to promises of better security.

The disappearance of the students from Dapchi in Yobe state on February 19th, also threatens access to education for girls in Yobe region, already plagued by low levels of school attendance.

The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), said last weekend it had sent 250 "armed operatives", to provide security in the 30 public secondary schools in Yobe.

Head of the Nigerian Paramilitary Group Abdullahi Muhammadu, said five hundred other soldiers were sent to neighbouring Borno state, and a further 400 to Adamawa state in Nigeria.