Northern leaders and stakeholders have acknowledged deep-rooted social, political and leadership failures across the region, warning that insecurity, neglect of education, corruption, elite rivalry and the Almajiri crisis are threatening the future of Northern Nigeria.
The concerns were contained in the communiqué of the third Late General Hassan Usman Katsina Memorial Conference organised by the New Vision Development Initiative, NEVDI, at Arewa House, Kaduna.
The communique of the conference with the theme, “From Sacrifice to Strategy: Rekindling General Hassan Usman’s Katsina Vision for Prosperous Northern Nigeria,” was released, weekend.
The conference brought together political, traditional and religious leaders, academics and other stakeholders.
Major-General Alwali Kazir, a former Chief of Army Staff, chaired the conference, while President Bola Tinubu was represented by Alhaji Ibrahim Masari.
Chairman of the Northern Elders Forum, Prof. Ango Abdullahi, presented a special report, while Dr Usman Bugaje of the Arewa Research Development Project delivered the lead paper, which was discussed by Prof. Siddique Abubakar Mohammed of the Centre for Development Research and Training, Zaria.
The conference said that after years of discussing the problems confronting the North, the region could no longer remain at the level of diagnosis without taking decisive action.
It identified insecurity, displacement of farmers, the persistence of the Almajiri system and the large number of out-of-school children as some of the most serious challenges requiring urgent intervention.
The gathering was particularly critical of what it described as a declining value system in the North, saying wealth had increasingly been elevated above knowledge in determining leadership.
It also expressed concern that corrupt individuals and sycophants were sometimes accorded greater respect than morally upright citizens.
The conference criticised what it called the waste of community resources on extravagant weddings, naming ceremonies and other celebrations, arguing that such wealth could instead be mobilised to tackle poverty and promote community development.
It also raised concern over the neglect of girl-child education, saying girls should be equipped with sufficient education and skills to sustain themselves and their families.
The communiqué equally lamented corruption across different sectors, including among some religious leaders, warning that such conduct had contributed to the erosion of traditional values such as truth, dignity, respect, sacrifice, fair play, promptness and dedication to duty.
Another major concern was the absence of reliable demographic planning.
According to the conference, the North does not sufficiently track how many people are born, die, marry or relocate, making meaningful development planning difficult.
The stakeholders also blamed persistent quarrels among Northern political, traditional and religious leaders for weakening the region.
“The North must have unity of purpose for development of the region,” the communiqué stated, stressing that meaningful development would remain difficult without cooperation among its leaders.
The conference also criticised what it described as endless campaigning and rhetoric by the political elite, declaring that the time had come to translate the legacy of General Hassan Usman Katsina into concrete action.
It further called for a review of approaches to insecurity, saying methods adopted since 2009 had failed to produce the desired results.
At the heart of the resolutions was a commitment to confront the Almajiri problem, which participants identified as one of the gravest threats to the North’s human capital, economic competitiveness, security, social cohesion and sustainable development.
NEVDI resolved to develop a model for removing Almajiri children from the streets and providing them with meaningful education and opportunities.
Under the proposed initiative, influential and willing philanthropists would be mobilised across the Northern states to support the programme. A common implementation template would also be designed, while a committee of trustees would supervise the project.
The conference stressed, however, that success should not merely mean moving children from the streets into classrooms.
It said the ultimate objective should be to ensure that every child, irrespective of gender, location, disability, economic circumstances or educational tradition, receives meaningful learning, skills and competencies capable of providing a pathway to productive citizenship.
The communiqué warned that the crisis could no longer be addressed through conferences, television and radio discussions, fragmented interventions or short-term projects.
It called for sustained and coordinated action involving governments, development partners, civil society organisations, communities, philanthropists, individuals and the private sector.
NEVDI pledged to translate the resolutions of the conference into “practical, testable and scalable solutions.”
The communiqué was signed for the organisation’s Board of Trustees by retired Colonel Lawan Gwadabe.
Northern leaders warn about Almajiri crisis, vow to resolve issue
