Stakeholders at a meeting convened to find solutions to the plight of almajiri in Bauchi have blamed the lack of support from the government and other stakeholders to Quranic teachers as the cause for why almajiri children turn to street begging.

The stakeholders meeting, held on Saturday, was put together by the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC).

In a nine-point communique issued at the end of a meeting and signed by Muhammad Mujtaba, chairman of the communique committee, the stakeholders said the teachers needed training on psycho-social, entrepreneurship, and other lifesaving skills.

The stakeholders urged the government to set aside intervention funds and resources for the almajiri. According to the communique, “Stakeholders’ engagement is necessary to bring about workable and acceptable changes in the almajiri system.

“Sensitisation on responsible parenting should reach remote villages to help reduce the burden on the teachers at tsangaya schools,” the communique read.

The stakeholders called on the private sector and philanthropists to support the needs of the almajiri system and for budgetary provisions to benefit the almajiri system instead of ad hoc interventions by the government.

They also called for integrating the almajiri system with the conventional educational system to ensure that the children benefited from Western and Islamic education.