Saturday, 29 September 2012

Northern Nigeria: A suggested path to transformation (2)


By Aliyu Musa

In addition to reviving the collapsed indigenous industries in the region the governments need to introduce policies that would protect them. This is view of the fierce competition they would face from foreign industries whose products freely trickle into the country and effectively render indigenous ones inferior.

Ignorance is a major problem afflicting the region. Many of the problems faced today in the north are blamed or poverty while ignorance is scarcely mentioned. But, in reality, ignorance is as much a problem as poverty. Millions of young people are idle because they have not had any serious formal education or vocational training that would arm them with the skills they require to fend for themselves. This in part explains why many are easily rented during crises to swell the ranks of foot soldiers.

Recent figures from the National Population Commission (NPC) show that the lowest literacy level of less than 35 per cent is in the north, specifically the north-east. This is diametrically opposed to what is obtained in other regions especially the south-west, where it is as high as nearly 90 per cent.

Schools are generally in an awful state across the country but monumentally so in the north. To make it worse insurgents are not only discouraging people from seeking western education but are also targeting and setting schools ablaze.

Nonetheless, the north must focus on investing in its population through education and the acquisition of skills. Beginning with retraining the trainers effort should be made to significantly update the skills of teachers through proper and further training.

Rather than allowing private proprietors to do as they like, the various state governments should also heavily invest in building schools like some governors in other regions are doing. Free education could be introduced to support those from poor financial background especially, while other grants/financial rewards could be reserved for quality performance to encourage pupils/students to aim higher.

Although mentoring may not be so popular in Nigeria the services of dedicated mentors could be solicited to inspire children whose parents/families have not had western education and do not think they stand a chance.

With the right environment and suitable personnel/teachers schools in the region should be back on their feet sufficiently competing with other parts in terms of providing quality education and producing a generation of future leaders in various fields.

A particular brand of education that needs reforming is the al-majiri system. Over the years things have continued a downward spiral and the case of al-majirai is significantly worrying. In his book ‘Nigeria: Dancing on the brink’, Dr John Campbell eloquently discusses the plight of al-majiri in Northern Nigeria.

Despite promises by the federal government to reform the system by building formal schools state governments in the north need to take the lead. They need to take along experts whose skills would be useful in restructuring the curricular to include skill acquisition; skills that would enable the al-majirai make a difference.

Street begging, which is partly linked to the above problem, is also blamed on poverty and ignorance. I once heard that Jigawa State was running a scheme that would discourage street begging by offering stipends to the disabled and many of those living off hand outs. But the effectiveness of the programme, if it is still in operation, is questionable. Even so, the government must be commended for initiating it in the first place.

However, there is a need for similar programmes to be replicated in most parts of the region and care taken to ensure help reaches those who actually need it. But most importantly, people do not really need stipendiary supports to survive. They need empowerment; even the disabled can be empowered.

The list of areas needing restructuring is endless and cannot be exhaustively discussed in this column. But the core of this analysis is to further highlight some of these issues and, hopefully, draw the attention of people who would take these and other suggestions seriously and genuinely act on them.

Whereas emphasis has been mainly placed on state governments playing a leading role, we should not ignore the fact that only collaborative efforts to confront the challenges would produce the best result and in the quickest time.

The onus is, therefore, not only on politicians and/or political office holders in the region to bring about the desired change. It is also the job of everyone, especially professionals from the region, residing home or abroad, to play a role in this. This is because we are all in it together.
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