The Emir of Bauchi, Dr Rilwanu Suleiman Adamu has warned against the dangers inherent in early and compulsory marriage of the girl-child by parents, saying the practice portends danger to the would-be mother.
Dr Riwanu Suleiman Adamu also counselled parents to stop forcing their girl-children into street hawking under the pretext of boosting their economic status, stressing that such activity is detrimental to the proper upbringing of girls in the society.
The emir was speaking at the graduation ceremony of 448 girls who were trained on life skills focusing on letting the girls realize their self worth and esteem, organized by the Bauchi state chapter of the Federation of Muslim Women’s Association in Nigeria (FOMWAN), FAHIMTA, and Girl is Gold (CIGF) held weekend at Government Girls College, Bauchi.
Dr. Riwanu Adamu who was represented at the occasion by the Dan-Isan Bauchi, Alhaji Ibrahim Yakubu 111, also called on parents to enrol their children, especially the girl-child into school, saying educating a woman is educating the society.
While commending organizers of the life skills training, the emir urged participants of the course drawn from seven LGAs of Bauchi, Dass, Jama’are, Toro, Ganjuwa, Katagum and Warji to make the best use of what they have learnt in their respective communities.
MEDA, a Canadian support organization country director in Nigeria, Mr. Chom Babu noted that Nigeria’s problems need solutions by fellow Nigerians, hence the need for all hands to be on deck to salvage the country from social malaise.
Mr. Chom Babu, who outlined the importance of life skills training, expressed confidence that Bauchi community will immensely benefit from the MEDA programmes.
Bauchi state FOMWAN chairperson, Hajiya Fatsuma Aminu Mohammed had in a welcome address noted that the training will prepare participants for the challenges of gender roles within their communities.
The training, according to her, will also sharpen the participants’ financial literacy to prudence in life and appreciate the role of education as a tool for self-reliance.
