By Babs Oyetoro, Seyi, Odewale, Francis Ajuonuma, Clement Adeyi, Kenny Folowosele, and Anthony Otaru
A cross-section of Nigerians from different backgrounds have expressed deep concern about the imminent dangers posed by the unchecked widespread street begging predominantly among children from a particular section of the country.
Some of these respondents to ThisNigeria special assignment warned that the rapid growth of this social menace is inimical to the future of this great country saying if it is allowed to fester could set the country on the path of implosion.
A Consultant and Clinical Psychologist at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital, Idi-Araba, Dr Charles Umeh has painted a picture of doom days lying ahead for Nigeria over the rising number of street child beggars roaming several cities of the country.
Umeh, also a Senior Lecturer at the Department of Psychiatry, College of Medicine, University of Lagos, noted that children who live on the street without parental guardians grow up becoming social menace not beneficial to society.
He warned of a rise in crime rate and drug abuse soon in Nigeria if urgent steps are not taken by the government to nick in the bud the rising number of child street beggars in the country.
According to him, “Young children need parental guardians to be nurtured to become part of veritable society when they get to adulthood.
“But where that is lacking, it results in the breeding of crime intent children which would in turn have adverse consequence on the society.”
He likened the upbringing of children to the computer – “garbage in, garbage out”, saying what is put in them today that they will exhibit tomorrow when they grow up, noting that living on the street exposes children to crimes and drugs.
“So, when you talk about children, you are saying people below 18 years. Now, why do we say they are minnows? They are minnows in the sense that they require a guardian and direction to develop emotionally and become veritable society adults.
“So, when they grow up with proper guardians they have very good characteristics as adults. And that’s all it could be to navigate the rectitude of life but when people don’t have that, they become a problem virtually to the society.
“Now, let’s look at the children on the street. Why do we say they are on the street because they don’t have a home? They don’t have parents that can take care of them. They don’t even have a caring person that can take proper care of them, because at this stage children are nurtured to become veritable society when they get to adulthood. So, how are they getting their nurturance on the street?
“That means they have to interact with their pearls along the street, as regards proper parental guardian. We are talking about drug use becoming very rampant. In the past, nobody paid attention to it, but now is becoming the order of the day.
“And this is the hallmark of children on the street; they are abused in different ways. They join gangs and make use of different kinds of psychiatric substances. What do you think these could do to their personality, their emotion, and then worse of all, they can’t be on the street and still be in school, knowing that knowledge is power, so obviously, being on the street will deprive them of that basic knowledge education can give and tomorrow they will survive the hard way,” he explained.
Also, a psychologist and former Senior Marketing Officer of the CFAO Abuja branch Dr Adamu Umar has pleaded with the government at all levels to establish mixed Islamic/conventional schools that will take children beggars off the streets across the country.
Umar, an Islamic scholar added that the call had become necessary to prevent further threats to national security as witnessed in the last 10 years where religious fundamentalists such as ISWAP, Boko-Haram, and banditry have subjected Nigerians to killings, abduction, and land-grabbing.
According to him, “Most of these children beggars on the streets end up being indoctrinated and recruited to become a nuisance and posing security threats to the nation and citizens, we can see that these threats are also affecting foreign direct investment inflows to the economy. Many companies are relocating out of Nigeria, the resultant effect is the unemployment of youths.
“Under the Almajiri system which gives room to these street beggars, parents send their children, mostly boys from the ages of 3-12 to acquire Qur’anic education at various locations. Many rural and poor families who cannot afford formal schooling make this choice.
“It is difficult to know the number of Almajiri children in Nigeria. It can be put at about 10 million or about 81 per cent of the more than 10 million out-of-school children in the country.”
According to him, parents may believe they are fulfilling their obligation to provide a religious and moral education for their children and that the learning is provided free of charge. Almajiri children are forced by their teachers (mallams) to beg on the streets at the expense of their education.
A Sociology lecturer at Katsina State College of Education, Wahab Babangida who spoke to ThisNigeria on the phone said the negative implications of children beggars in the streets are scaring.
Babangida stressed that some of these children have taken to banditry, vandalism, kidnappings, ballot box snatchers, and thugs for politicians in various dimensions after leaving the so-called Islamic schools because they never received love and care from their parents.
“Many of them lost the identities of their parents and state of birth. They could die cheap deaths for lack of proper medical attention- they grow up in their Qur’anic schools with hunger and are deprived of welfare. Automatically, they become wild adults without formal educational skills to fend for themselves. What is left for them is violence in different forms. They are dangerous to the society.”
While speaking on the psychological implications of the Almajirai System in Nigeria, particularly children’s street begging, Precious Anslem, an educational psychologist, who spoke exclusively to ThisNigeria.
Anslem, a Programme Officer with the Mandate Health Empowerment Initiative (MHEI) added his voice to the ongoing discussion, saying, “Firstly, early and often prolonged separation from family environments can severely disrupt emotional development, leading to attachment issues and feelings of abandonment.
“Children, who are sent far from their homes, frequently experience profound loneliness and insecurity, which can have long-lasting effects on their ability to form stable relationships,” she added.
“The living conditions within the Almajiri system are often inadequate, with many children residing in overcrowded and unsanitary environments. This exposure does not only pose significant health risks but also contributes to chronic stress and anxiety.
“The lack of a balanced educational curriculum further compounds these issues, as it limits cognitive development and future opportunities, fostering a sense of hopelessness and low self-esteem among these children.
“Additionally, the stigma and discrimination faced by Almajiri children in society can lead to social isolation and internalized shame, exacerbating feelings of inadequacy.
“The economic exploitation that many of these children endure, through begging or child labour, is another significant concern. This exploitation can be both dehumanizing and traumatizing, affecting their sense of self-worth and prospects.
“Furthermore, the exposure to violence and abuse within some Almajiri settings can result in significant psychological trauma, including post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).”
Anselm also noted that unfortunately, there is often a lack of accessible mental health resources to address these issues, leaving many children without the support they desperately need.
“In the light of these challenges, it is imperative that we take a comprehensive approach to reforming the Almajiri system.
“This includes improving living conditions, integrating formal education with religious instruction, and establishing accessible mental health services tailored to the needs of these children.
Anselm stressed that efforts must be made to reduce social stigma and support the integration of Almajiri children into broader society.
“Addressing these psychological and social challenges is essential not only for the well-being of the children but also for fostering a more inclusive and supportive society,” he added.
*Interacting with street beggars
In this report, ThisNigeria spoke to scores of street beggars who told tales of their experiences in Abuja.
Aliyu Ibrahim, a 13-year-old boy from Zamfara State, said he was born into a poor family. His parents could not afford to send him and his six siblings to school. So, he was enrolled in Almajiri School.
“My parents don’t care about education and even Quranic school. I come out daily to beg for alms. Sometimes, we enter cars. Many times, we trek and trek to beg just to feed for the day.
He called on the government to help him and other Almajiris by giving them a good education that their fathers could not give them.
“I also want to taste and enjoy a good life and freedom like other kids because I see them every day,” Ibrahim, who spoke with our correspondent through an interpreter added.
Yinusa, another Almajiri, said that he had never experienced parental care and love as a child because he grew up on the streets begging to survive.
“I don’t know what education is like because I never had the opportunity and privilege to be educated,” he said.
He appealed to the government to take care of the Almajiri because they contend with hunger daily.
Other children could barely express themselves even with the aid of an interpreter because of a lack of parenting and upbringing.
ThisNigeria also met four children street beggars in an Islamic school at Kubwa. They include Saliu Musa, aged 5, Bello Kifi 7, Umaru Matawale, 7, and Bukar Hamisu 10 through an interpreter.
Saliu Musa, who spoke on behalf of others said, they are sent out daily by their teachers to look for food and that all the money they receive goes directly to their Islamic teachers.
“All of us here are from Sokoto and Kano states. We don’t have savings for ourselves, we give all the cash we get to our teachers or owners of our school. We face lots of difficulties such as lack of good accommodation, and no healthcare.
“Those of us with severe sicknesses may die and immediately be buried without our family knowing. We have lost touch with our parents since we came here. We don’t have good clothes or shoes to put on, although we enjoy the teachings but our school lacks care and love because they beat a hell out of us at will.
“If given the privilege, some of us would like to go to formal schools provided feeding, accommodation enough funds will be made available, but some prefer to learn handwork such as driving or tailoring,” Musa said.
*I beg to feed my family
Amina Khadijah, 38, from Katsina never learnt a trade nor had any form of education. Her only means of survival has been alms begging right from her early years till date. Her deformed frame, crippled, was all she needed to make a living as a beggar.
Sitting at her usual place on the sidewalk of the popular Lafenwa Bridge, Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital, with her four kids, she seems more in the business of begging than learning a trade to eke out a living for herself and her kids.
She spoke of how she followed her husband, Abdulahi, also a beggar down to the southwestern part of the country before they finally settled in Abeokuta where their business of begging thrives. “Me and my Oga don te for Abeokuta. E for don reach fifteen years wey we come here. Na Lagos we dey before we come displace from Sango-Ota,” she said in passable pidgin English.
She continued, “We dey live for Sabo area and na here we dey come every time to beg, Alhamudulahi, we dey see small, small money wey we dey take chop. Some people dey carry ‘sara’ (food) com give us, some na clothes.”
According to her, she makes an average of N5,000 daily. But when givers are generous to her, she could make more than that. And since she and her husband do not pay any rent in the dilapidated shanty they occupy, what is left for them is feeding as there are no hopes of sending the kids to school.
On why she and her husband took to begging, she said in pidgin English: “Oga wetin we go do? Ba turenchi (meaning I can’t speak in English), ba kudi (money)”.
She later spoke to someone nearby in Hausa, who then interpreted her message that she had nobody to care for her when she was much younger. According to her, she lost her parents while very young and had fallen to the Polio attack, which made her crippled. All she could acquire as education was the Quranic form of education and it was very difficult for her to move from one place to another.
Her husband’s story is not different, when pressed to share his experience, the gentleman murmured in Hausa and asked his wife to discontinue her story. Perhaps, he sensed something that the chat may not bring anything good to the table as it was later gathered that they had granted similar interviews in the past which fetched them nothing.
A few metres away from where the couple sat were some kids, who could not be more than seven years of age. They were a mixture of Hausa and Fulani, going by their looks and hair on their heads. They were about eight, moving pairs begging for alms.
The youngest of them, a little girl of about four years old, was seen running after passers-by almost holding on to their clothes to draw their attention while begging for alms.
A whole lot of them at the place had no other reason for begging other than the economic hardship they were facing.
Also, in Ibadan the other time this reporter visited the ancient city, a motley of beggars thronged motor parks and bus stops, milling around, literally harassing passengers and passersby, while begging for alms.
Unfortunately, most of them are older women of Yoruba stock unlike what is obtained in other places. They will regale you endlessly with prayers and praises until you part with the few notes left with you.
Getting the view of a university teacher, Idris in Abeokuta, who has a master’s degree in sociology, begging comes in different guises. There are some beggars, who beg because of the situation they found themselves in. These set of people he called situational beggars.
He said, “They are not beggars, going by the meaning of the word, but are being pushed to beg. Probably they need money to offset their medical expenses and are at their wit’s end as no one is around to help. This is understandable.
“There are some others, who are lazy lots, and the only way out is to beg. These would feign to beg and try all manners of tricks to solicit alms from people. I remember in those days when some would use shear butter on their eyes to indicate that they were blind, hence begging for alms.”
There are some others he termed professional beggars, who though may have one disability or the other, and see begging as a means of survival.
“There are some who take begging as a serious work, hence their livelihood depends on it. Those are the ones you see sitting at the foot of the bridge in Lafenwa and those who operate at motor parks,” he said.
