As part of efforts to tackle the spread of coronavirus, governors of the Northern states of Nigeria have all agreed to ban Almajiri system.
The agreement was reached at a meeting held via teleconference and chaired by Governor Simon Lalong of Plateau State.
Lalong is the chairman of the Northern Governors’ Forum.
The decision of the governors was made known by the Director of Press and Public Affairs to Lalong, Simon Macham, in a statement issued on Tuesday.
Following the decisions, the children involved in the Almajiri system would be returned to their states of origin.
The statement reads: “On border control and lockdown measures, the Northern Governors retained their earlier decision for the States to individually decide on the measure to adopt, but reaffirmed the need for border closures to stop the inter-state spread of the disease, which is rising in the region.
“The Governors also discussed the risk that Almajiri children are exposed to because of the Coronavirus disease where they unanimously decided to totally ban the Almajiri system and evacuate the children to their parents or States of origin.
“They agreed to take a cue from Kano, Kaduna and Nasarawa States who have begun returning Almajiri children to families and States of origin, while those within their States who do not have parents are taken care of by the Government.
“They vowed never to allow the system to persist any longer because of the social challenges associated with it, including the perpetuation of poverty, illiteracy, insecurity and social disorder.”
