PROGRAMME · SINCE 2019
Almajiri and Tsangaya Integration
Bringing Tsangaya learners into a curriculum that keeps Qur'anic study intact and adds literacy, numeracy, a trade, feeding and health screening. Led by the Kano State Qur'anic and Islamiyyah School Management Board, with ₦12,600,000,000 committed this year.
The question, stated plainly
Kano's Qur'anic school system is old, large and respected. A Tsangaya gathers children around a Mallam to learn to read, write, recite and memorise the Qur'an, and it has done so in this city and its hinterland for centuries. About 486,000 learners are in the system today, in some 900 registered schools. Nothing in this programme is premised on the idea that they should not be there.
The difficulty is what happens afterwards. A graduate who has memorised the Qur'an in full and cannot read a contract, write a letter, price a job or fill in a form is not equipped for the economy he will live in, and the burden of that falls on him and on his family. A second difficulty is nearer to hand: where a Tsangaya has taken in more boarders than the Mallam can feed, children have been sent out to beg, and that is a welfare failure whatever else it is.
The programme addresses both without touching what works. Integration adds; it does not replace. The Qur'anic timetable is kept whole, the Mallam remains the head of his own school, and around it the State places teachers for literacy and numeracy, a practical trade, a hot meal every school day, health screening, and boarding and bedding where the learners already board. The Mallam receives a monthly stipend, which for many schools is the first regular income they have had.
Reach and cost
486,000
Learners reached
Across 44 local government areas
900
Registered schools
480 Tsangaya · 290 integrated · 130 not yet
₦12.6bn
Committed this year
Feeding is the largest line within it
11,200
Mallams on stipend
Paid against attendance records
What integration adds, and what it leaves alone
Integration is voluntary and it is agreed with the Mallam before anything starts. The existing timetable is written down as it stands, and the added subjects are placed in the hours it already leaves free — usually the middle of the day. Nothing is removed from the Qur'anic programme: the same hours, the same order of study, the same teacher.
What the State brings is a teacher for the added subjects, slates and exercise books, a hot meal on every school day, health screening twice a year with treatment and referral where it is needed, and boarding, bedding and mosquito nets where the learners are already boarding. Where a trade is taught, the tools and consumables come with it.
A Mallam who does not wish to integrate is not compelled to. His school stays on the register and is still visited for the welfare of the children in it. In practice, most who have seen a neighbouring school integrated have asked to join, and the waiting list is now the binding constraint rather than the willingness.
- The Qur'anic timetable is kept whole — nothing is taken out of it.
- Literacy in Hausa and English, and numeracy, taught by a posted teacher.
- One practical trade, with the tools and consumables supplied.
- One hot meal on every school day for every enrolled learner.
- Health screening twice a year, with treatment and referral.
- Boarding, bedding and mosquito nets where the learners board.
- A monthly stipend to the Mallam, paid against attendance records.
How a school joins
Registration and integration are both free. A school may register without integrating, and may join the integration programme later.
The Board coordinator visits
There is a coordinator in each of the 44 local government areas. The coordinator records the Mallam's name, the site, the number of learners and where they come from, and explains what integration would involve. Nothing is signed on that visit.
Registration on the public register
A single return: the school, the Mallam, the site and ward, the learners split between boys and girls, the teachers, whether the learners board, and the water and sanitation on site. The coordinator completes it with a Mallam who prefers not to write. The school receives a code and a certificate of registration. Registration does not expire.
A welfare visit within thirty days
Shelter, water, sanitation, sleeping arrangements for boarders, feeding, and whether any child is going out for food. Where something is wrong, the Board's job is to put it right, not to close the school.
The Mallam decides on integration
If he agrees, the existing timetable is written down and the added subjects are placed in the free hours. The agreement records what the State will supply and what the school undertakes to teach.
Teachers, materials and feeding begin
A teacher is posted for the added subjects, slates and exercise books are delivered, the feeding contract for the school is placed with a local caterer, and the health screening is scheduled. The stipend begins with the first verified attendance return.
Termly returns and an annual inspection
A short attendance and progress return each term, and one welfare inspection a year — more often where a concern has been raised. Feeding and stipend payments are reconciled against the attendance record.
What the programme delivers, and to whom
| Component | Who receives it | How often | Cost to the school or family |
|---|---|---|---|
| Teacher for literacy and numeracy | Integrated schools | Posted for the session | Nothing |
| Slates, exercise books and texts | All registered learners | Each session | Nothing |
| One hot meal | Every enrolled learner | Every school day | Nothing |
| Health screening and referral | Every enrolled learner | Twice a year | Nothing |
| Boarding, bedding and nets | Learners who board at the school | On enrolment, replaced as needed | Nothing |
| Trade tools and consumables | Schools teaching a trade | Each session | Nothing |
| Mallam's stipend | Registered Mallams and teachers | Monthly, against attendance | Nothing |
| Qur'anic and Islamic Studies Certificate entry | Candidates in registered schools | Once, at the end of the programme | Paid by the State |
How progress is measured
The programme reports against six measures, published in the annual report and taken from the Board's returns and the Annual School Census.
- Registered schools, and the share of them integrated.
- Learners enrolled, split between boys and girls.
- Learners assessed as functionally literate and numerate in Hausa and English.
- Learners who have completed a trade programme and hold a tool kit.
- Meals served, reconciled against the attendance register.
- Children found begging for food at a registered school — the measure the Board treats as its own failure.
Raising a concern about a child
Any resident may raise a concern about the welfare of a child in a registered school, in Hausa or English, without giving their name to the school. Contact the Board coordinator for the local government area, any local government education office, or the Ministry on +234 803 700 1420 or at info@moe.kn.gov.ng.
A concern about a child is acted on within seventy-two hours. Give the name of the school and, if you have it, the ward and the school code.
Questions asked about integration
Does integration replace Qur'anic study?
Who decides whether a school integrates?
Is a Tsangaya learner able to enter a formal school afterwards?
What does it cost the school or the family?
What trades are taught?
Are girls in the programme?
What happens if a school is found with children begging?
Who funds the programme?
Register a school, or ask about integration
Speak to the Board coordinator for your local government area, or read how Tsangaya and Islamiyyah schools are registered and inspected.