The Resource Center for Human Rights and Civic Education (CHRICED) an NGO, in collaboration with Anti-Slavery International (ASI) has called the attention of the federal government and state governors to the horrible human rights abuses experienced by children called ‘Almajiri’ through forced begging.
It’s Executive Director Dr. Ibrahim Zikirullahi, made the call in Abuja during the public presentation of its research report tittled “Shackles to the past; an exploration of the best prospect for combatting forced child begging.”
According to him, the research is focused on understanding the details of what has worked well and what has not worked so well with reference to the various state and non-state interventions on forced child begging in Northern Nigeria.
He noted the increase in forced child begging in Nigeria especially in Northern Nigeria, adding that no amount of statistical data can better describe the enormity of the problem than the disturbing everyday experience of seeing hordes of hungry, undernourished, and barely clad children roaming the streets of major cities in the North of Nigeria.
He said, “These children are supposed to be young pupils of Qur’anic schools pursuing the goal of acquiring religious knowledge. However, the reality of the collapse of the ancient system of religious education means the Qur’anic teachers or ‘Mallams’ have no means of fending for the pupils in their care and resort to sending out the children to beg to sustain both the Mallam and the almajirai themselves.
“Ostensibly in the keep of their Mallam, these children spend almost all their day in the streets and in market places, and spend their night wherever they find to lay their heads. Thus, these children are effectively abandoned by their parents and exploited by their Mallams.
The Exec. Dir. further expressed displeasure that children were largely condemned to a future life of poverty and hardship, noting that the Islamic education they receive equips them with few skills usable in the modern economy.
“This has transformed the almajiranci system of education which previously is the foundation for the generational transmission of Islamic culture into a means of child abuse, specifically exploitation, neglect, and impoverishment,” he stressed.
He therefore called for a stakeholder response to the Almajiri situation including collective effort from state and non-state actors in ensuring that insecurity confronting Nigeria is put in the proper context.
“As we speak, the gory stories of the activities of armed bandits, kidnappers and other violent criminals in the North West, have become staple for daily news updates.
“In the North East, the Boko Haram insurgency continues to rage. In the North Central, the activities of herdsmen continue to undermine security of lives and peaceful co-existence. The reality of over 10 million children wandering the streets, with no education, healthcare and other basic necessities to make them a proper part of society amounts to yet another recipe for future violent conflicts.
In his remarks, ASI representative Mr. Oladoyon Olaide, noted the rise in aed bandits, kidnapping, insecurity, saying the economic development model of the country has ignored a significant number of the society, the youth.
Meanwhile, Head of Programme at Amnesty International Sheun Bakere, blamed the current security challenge on the neglect of Almajiri children, calling on the government to implement all International instruments on welfare of children if child abuse issue must be addressed.
