The Kaduna State Government has introduced measures aimed at addressing the increasing number of Almajiri children in the state.
One of such measures is the introduction of tuition free education at the primary and secondary school level and free meals for pupils and students during school hours. This is aimed at making education attractive for children and parents.
The idea behind the Almajiri system of education is to expose children between the ages of 4 and 7 to learn the Holy Quran, assisted by the Mallams.
Report says some of the children move from street to street, house to house in clusters and with bowls in hands singing and begging for arms instead of searching for knowledge.
According to a 2009 statistics from the Ministry of Education, an estimated 10 million Almajiri children are found in northern Nigeria, and the figure keeps increasing by the day. The system has been blamed for a rise in the number of beggars and miscreants in most urban cities in the north.
Speaking to Channels Television, some of the children explained that they had lived at the Islamic school for more than four years, and their teacher, also known as Mallam, send them out to beg everyday.
Some Muslims criticised the system alleging that some of the Islamic teachers have deviated from the original concept of the system, and are rather using the children for money making.
They attribute the situation to poverty and urged parents to be mindful of the number of children they give birth to. They also called for government’s intervention.
