Deborah Akinyosoye
The Federal Government has commenced full recovery of the 157 model Almajiri Schools built across the country under the Administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan.
Nura Muhammad, Spokesperson of the National Commission for Almajiri and Out-of-School Children Education (NCAOOSCE), disclosed this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Sunday.
Muhammad said the recovery was a decisive step taken by the federal government to revitalise and institutionalise Almajiri education in the country.
According to him, the recovery process is underway, and all the schools will be brought under the Commission’s control before their rehabilitation begins.
He added that the renewed effort was a sequel to the establishment of a legally backed national body, specifically mandated to regulate all Almajiri-related educational activities, an institutional foundation that was absent during earlier reforms.
The spokesperson commended former President Jonathan for his remarkable efforts in initiating the 157 model Almajiri schools, describing the project as “a noble and well-intentioned stride toward modernising the system”.
He, however, noted that the initiative faced several constraints, particularly the failure to adequately engage “Alarammas” – the traditional Qur’anic teachers/memorisers, responsible for Almajiri education.
“We must commend President Goodluck Jonathan for his remarkable efforts towards reforming Almajiri education, which led to the establishment of 157 model Almajiri schools across the country.
“Although the initiative was noble and well-intentioned, it, however, faced several challenges.
“One major issue was the inability to adequately carry along the Alarammas during the policy implementation.
“In addition, the programme existed merely as an initiative under the Federal Ministry of Education, without a strong institutional framework to sustain it,” he said.
Muhammad, however, said that with the establishment of the Commission, backed by law to regulate all activities relating to Almajiri education, and with the recent adoption of a National Policy on Almajiri Education, the momentum for reform is significantly stronger.
“We are confident that, in due course, all negative practices associated with the system will be eliminated.
“These schools will soon be fully under our control and subsequently rehabilitated so they can serve the purpose for which they were originally established,” he said.