By Miriam Humbe
For years now, the menace of idle children and youths roaming the streets and begging, all in the name of acquiring education, has been a source of concern to policy makers in Nigeria. Recent studies conducted by the Ministerial Committee on Madrasah education, puts the population of almajiri, at about 10 million.
It therefore, becomes obvious that for Nigeria to achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and Education for All (EPA) goals, there is the need for an accelerated intervention by the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC).
The commitment demonstrated by government in setting up an Implementation Committee on almajiri education, is highly appreciated.
At various levels, stakeholders, especially governments of the affected Northern States, have devised various ways to deal with the social pandemic with little or no success in spite of their policy intervention. Children of school age and youths, who should have been in productive engagement continue to roam the streets with neither succour, nor hope for the future, until now.
The Integrated Almajiri Education, is essentially designed by the Federal Government, under President Goodluck Jonathan, to integrate the Islamic School system to provide quality education for these target population.
In order to achieve this, the Jonathan Goodluck administration put in place a policy framework which focuses on two critical levels.
The first is engagement with the rationalisation of the existing traditional system of Islamic education with a view to addressing existing problems and challenges, as well as consolidating achievements and expanding opportunities for the growth and development of the system.
Secondly, the mainstreaming and promotion of a dynamic Almajiri Education Model, which seeks to integrate effectively, Islamic disciplines and conventional school subjects, instill values and morals; provide dual language competency in English and Arabic; and cultivate a culture of educational excellence.
The board policy goals and objectives for the development of Almajiri Education in Nigeria, among other things, include ensuring the institutional development of Islamic School system and the provision of requisite infrastructural and welfare facilities, such that it functions as a true Almajiri Education system.
The framework also seeks to address effectively and on a long-term basis, the challenges facing the traditional Islamic Education Sector, especially as they relate to itinerancy and begging.
It also provides viable educational platforms and model Almajiri schools that could steadily and effectively integrate conventional disciplines into Islamic Education System, and providing basic education access to all children of school age throughout the country.
Other broad policy goals and objectives, also include the provision of quality products that are imbued with the disciplines, character, knowledge and skills to enable them take full advantage of available opportunities and participate effectively and meaningfully in the socio-economic and political life of the nation.
To achieve these objectives, the federal government laid out a regulatory framework. One of the key factors which had aggravated the problems of the traditional Islamic Education System was the lack of a regulatory mechanism.
Boarding, Tsangaya Schools were established without reference to carrying capacity or ability to accommodate and feed the pupils while the Alarammas moved with pupils at will without being hindered by the existing laws.
The purpose of the regulatory framework is to address four related issues. Among them is primary itinerancy where an Alarama moves with his students, especially during the dry-season month (Ci-rani), usually to the urban centres. The central focus of the Almajjiri Education Framework as earlier stated, is on the institutionalisation of Islamic Education.
Also, secondary itinerancy, which is a situation where students were recruited from one part of the country and sent to another part for the purpose of pursuing their Quranic studies with no adequate institutional facilities and resources to take care of them. The issue of bara (begging for alms) is usually associated with both primary and secondary itinerancy.
While registering schools, as it is done within the conventional school system, government shall as much as possible, avoid taking a purely legalistic approach to putting in place a regulatory regime. Efforts shall
be made to engage with the proprietors and re-establish confidence in government promises as well as put in place, an incentives regime.
Enforcement is best done at the community level with the assistance of the traditional rulers, Islamic organisations and the ‘Ulama’.
In many States, with large urban centres, the integrated Islamiyya, Ma’ahad and Tahfeez Primary and Secondary Schools, have been playing a pivotal role in the provision of a model almajiri institution which offers an integrated curriculum that will go a long way in supporting these efforts. State governments, State Universal Basic Educations (SUBEBs) shall collaborate with UBEC and other federal agencies to make this possible.
Existing integrated institutions could also benefit from the Curriculum and Instrumental materials that could be developed for the project.
Miriam Humbe,
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