Left to suffer: Hidden Struggle of Sokoto Out-of-School Girls

Fatimah Muhammad, 10, is one of many children of school age wandering around the campus of the Usmanu Danfodiyo University Sokoto (UDUS) as either beggars or maids doing menial jobs in female hostels.

Due to her background, western education is not a choice for Fatimah and her siblings. While her family believes that western education is expensive, the custom she grew up with only stamped vigour on islamic education and self-striving. 

“I am only allowed to attend islamic education from 8:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. So, me working for students earns me a tangible amount daily, which I do not get from home,” she said with a grim expression.

Educational deprivation

There’s an alarming rate of children being deprived of their entitlement to education.

Though primary education is officially free and compulsory, about 10.5 million of the country’s children aged 5-14 years are not in school, says the United Nations International Emergency Funds (UNICEF).

“In the north of the country, the picture is even bleaker, with a net attendance rate of 53 per cent,” UNICEF said. “The education deprivation in northern Nigeria is driven by various factors, including economic barriers and socio-cultural norms and practices that discourage attendance in formal education, especially for girls.

“Gender, like geography and poverty, is an important factor in the pattern of educational marginalisation. States in the north-east and north-west have female primary net attendance rates of 47.7 percent and 47.3 percent, respectively, meaning that more than half of the girls are not in school,” the agency explained.

A case too many

Like Fatimah, there are many underage out-of-school children who have been left to suffer by their parents working as maids on UDUS campus. While the male are regarded as ‘yaro boys’,  the females are called ‘yarinya girls’.

Maryam Ahmad, a 12-year-old girl who stays with her uncle in Gida Yaro, Wurno Local Government of Sokoto State, told CAMPUS REPORTER that she gets all her basic needs from running errands on campus.  

“By working for students, I can get the necessities I need. Whenever we have a wedding ceremony in the community, I use the money I make from the work I do on campus to buy clothes without asking my uncle,” said Maryam.

From her conversation with our reporter, CAMPUS REPORTER discovered that she is more interested in social activities and prefers engaging in a social lifestyle to getting an education.

Another girl, Hawawu Bello, also spoke about her preference for working to earn money rather than get a quality education.

“I sometimes use the daily money for myself and sometimes give it to my mother for saving,” she said. “And I love what I do instead of sitting at home not gaining any or even having a charge of the environment. 

For Nusayba Aliyu, she believes the money she makes from running errands is enough to take care of her needs. But unlike others, she’s open to opportunities.

“Most of the time I make as much as ₦300, ₦200, or even ₦500 from running errands. In most cases, I get food in place of money for the work I do,” she expressed.

“I would love to attend school if I have the opportunity to attend any, I would love to learn and come to UDUS as a student some day,” she said.