Commencing a comprehensive census of Almajiri schools across Kebbi State is the initiative undertaken by the state government through the Ministry of Religious Affairs.
The main aim of this development is to identify the parents, origins, locations, as well as the number and age of pupils in these schools.
This endeavor is driven by the goal to find a lasting solution to challenges within the educational system.
During a ministerial briefing organized by the Ministry of Information and Culture in Birnin Kebbi, Muhammad Sani Aliyu, the Commissioner for Religious Affairs, revealed this information.
Aliyu emphasized that the Ministry is actively working on developing strategies that will integrate the Almajiri system of education with secular education to contribute to the overall development of society.
He highlighted the current state of Almajiri education, pointing out that sending children below the age of five to schools without sufficient means of sustenance, leading them to beg for survival, contradicts the teachings of Islam.
Expressing the Ministry’s commitment to addressing this issue, Aliyu mentioned that going forward, the ministry aims to regulate the conduct of Almajiri training, streamline the concept of Almajiri education, and enhance the Almajiri system of education to tackle the negative consequences associated with some Almajiri children, often engaging in activities such as political thuggery and drug addiction.
Additionally, Aliyu disclosed that the ministry’s Zakat Department had provided free treatment for 23,542 psychiatric-related cases between May 2023 and March 2024.
This treatment was part of the Neuro Psychiatric Programme Outreach conducted on Saturdays and Sundays at the Zauro General Hospital, situated on the outskirts of Birnin Kebbi.
Medical personnel from the Federal Neuropsychiatric Hospital and Usumanu Danfodio Teaching Hospital, both in Sokoto, offered care to patients from Kebbi State, neighboring states, as well as Benin and Niger Republics.