Advocating a better deal for Almajirai

According to the Minister, the plight of orphans and vulnerable children is a serious issue requiring immediate attention at all levels, including the growing phenomenon of Almajiranci. The Almajiri Education Foundation explains “ ‘Almajiri’ as a word borrowed from Arabic for someone who leaves his home in search of knowledge in Islamic religion. In the […]

According to the Minister, the plight of orphans and vulnerable children is a serious issue requiring immediate attention at all levels, including the growing phenomenon of Almajiranci. The Almajiri Education Foundation explains “ ‘Almajiri’ as a word borrowed from Arabic for someone who leaves his home in search of knowledge in Islamic religion. In the ideal situation, the communities should support these children as they leave their families to become servants of Allah. Unfortunately this has not been the case, and many young boys are leaving their homes only to end up in the streets begging. They have no one to turn to.”

 

She said school children are roaming the streets hawking wares for their parents and guardians, while the Almajirai have turned to street children, begging and scavenging for survival without proper care and guidance from those entrusted with these innocent children. “Such unhealthy development must not be allowed to continue. We must protect our children from abuse, exploitation, child labour, rape and even untimely death. Appropriate laws are urgently required to ensure their survival, protection and development,” she said

Maina visited the state governors, Jigawa State House of Assembly, Emir of Kano, Alhaji Ado Bayero, Emir of Dutse, Dr Nuhu Sunusi, women groups, Orphanage and children’s homes, VVF centres, hospitals, Tsangaya schools, women, children and other vulnerable groups focused NGOS, among others. In Jigawa state , she called on the governor to put in place appropriate policies, initiatives, and machineries that would promote quality  service delivery to these category of children in  the state  adding “so that we will systematically reduce the growing number of Almajirai and other beggars from our street thereby ensuring the wellbeing of our future generation.”

Commissioner of Women Affairs and Social Development in the state, Hajiya Hadiza Abdulwahab said poverty is the major cause of the Almajiri phenomenon in Nigeria.

She said,  “ lack of commitment in those who have to  take care of those who don’t have is another cause ,because if you are committed, you are supposed to go back to your community to help the poor including children that are not yours. Stigma is also attached to the Almajiri because people feel they are poor that is why they were sent to a teacher or scholar to take care of them. So they are stigmatized.”

She said the state has tried in many ways to keep Almaijiri off the street which accounts for their minimal presence in the streets unlike other states.

According to her, the state has schools for the Almajiri called Tsangaya and provide them with food, clothing and conviniences and there is also an initiative which is in the pipeline intended to integrate koranic education with western education.

The Women Minister said plans by government to integrate koranic schools and Western education is good as it will go along way to make the graduands self reliant and better citizens as education is the best means of achieving them.

She called on Almajiri prone states to adopt the system where the Almajirai are in schools and do not need to go about begging.  She called on well meaning Nigerians, organizations and development partners to partner with government on the system to ensure the full integration of our children and its survival.

During the minister’s visit to one of the Tsangaya schools in the state she called on the Almajirai to work hard, make the most of their learning, and benefit from the system.

She said currently the ministry is providing educational and health care support for 7,695 orphans and vulnerable children across the country under the Global Fund OVC project saying it is envisaged that by 2013 about 28, 000 vulnerable children will be in schools on scholarship nationwide.

The Minister also called for the passage of the Child rights Act in Kano and Jigawa States as the two states are part of the 13 yet to pass the Bill for the domestication of the Act in Nigeria.

She said the passage of the bill will be of immense benefit to the state because it provides legal backing for promotion and protection of rights of children to survive, develop, be protected and empowered to participate in the socio-economic development of the country.

The Speaker of the Jigawa state House of Assembly Hon. Adamu Ahmed said the Child Rights Act was initially passed but because of  some complaints from the Ulamahs it was debarred but that the House will still look at the bill  to see how to harmonised contentious areas and pass it again in the nearby future.

He said the state also has a disability bill enacted since 2007 and pays disability allowance to the disabled, and the House of assembly also has a person with disability as its member.

Maina also visited the Kano children’s home where some orphans and vulnerable children are housed.

The care taker of the Home, Hajiya Fadimat Mamud Saheed said there are different categories of children in the home, some are abandoned, some their parents have issues and some were abandoned but found and there are those whose parents died in accidents and their families couldn’t be traced and were brought to the home . She said some of the inmates are already in higher institutions and they come to the home during holidays.

Hajiya Maina advised the home to ensure that the children go to school and brought up with good morals. She also appealed to other people and orphans who were brought up in the home but are now independent to pick children from the home and train them too.

Other issues raised by the minister during her visit included reduction of maternal mortality, girl child education, integration of persons with disability and the aged, women’s economic empowerment, women’s increased participation in politics and decision-making, strengthening of the national gender policy and its strategic framework, increase budgetary allocation to the state ministry of women affairs to enable it carry its mandate effectively, among others.

The minister said developmental issues of children cannot be separated from women issues as they are intricately linked. She said Nigeria has one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the world today with a woman dying every 15 minutes from pregnancy related complications.

“Most of these deaths occur in Northern Nigeria, mostly in rural areas. Child mortality follows similar pattern with most deaths occurring in rural areas in Northern Nigeria.”She explained.

She said one of the things essential in attracting and keeping doctors and nurses in rural communities is an enabling work environment by way of provision of incentives and infrastructure.

She said when put in place alongside free maternal and child care, will encourage women to patronize skilled birth attendants and drastically reduce maternal and child deaths in the state, especially in rural communities.

The Minister also solicited the support of the Emirs of Kano. She said traditional rulers have roles to play in sensitizing, educating and positively reshaping public opinion on issues.

During her visit to the Emir of Kano, Alhaji Ado Bayero, she implored him to lend his royal hands in reshaping public opinion on issues like putting more women in decision-making positions, passage of the Child Rights Act in Kano, orphans and vulnerable children and Almajirinci, and girl child education.