KANO STAKEHOLDERS SEEK STRONGER MEASURES TO CURB DANGEROUS IRREGULAR MIGRATION
Young people in Kano State who see migration as their only route to a better life need more practical opportunities at home, stakeholders have said, calling for stronger grassroots sensitisation, expanded skills-acquisition programmes and greater support for traditional institutions.
The call was made at a two-day Policy Dialogue with Traditional Leaders and Local Government Authorities and Outcome Harvesting Meeting organised by the Adolescent Health and Information Project, AHIP, in collaboration with the International Organization for Migration, IOM.
The engagement focused on promoting safe, legal and regular migration while addressing some of the factors pushing young people and women towards dangerous journeys in search of opportunities abroad.
Participants were drawn from nine local government areas, including Dala, Gwale, Kano Municipal, Ungogo, Tarauni, Nassarawa, Kumbotso, Fagge and Bunkure.
Executive Director of AHIP, Dr. Mairo V. Bello, said the programme was designed to mobilise traditional institutions, local authorities, government agencies, civil society organisations, women and youth groups to raise awareness about the dangers associated with irregular migration.
Bello expressed concern over the vulnerability of young people and women who undertake dangerous migration routes, urging Nigerians seeking opportunities abroad to explore safe, legal and properly documented pathways.
She said AHIP, in collaboration with relevant government institutions, also supports returned migrants through skills-acquisition programmes designed to help them become self-reliant and contribute meaningfully to their communities.
For some families, the consequences of irregular migration go beyond the absence of a loved one. Women and young people attempting dangerous journeys can face trafficking, violence, exploitation, detention and, in some cases, death along the route.
Women Development Officer, Gwale LGA, Khadija Imam Abdullahi, said Kano and Nigeria were losing productive young people to irregular migration, with some dying on dangerous routes while others become victims of trafficking and exploitation.
Abdullahi called on governments at all levels to strengthen skills-acquisition centres and revitalise vocational and technical training institutions so that young people can acquire practical skills and build sustainable livelihoods.
She proposed the establishment of 20 skills-acquisition and vocational centres in each of Kano State’s 44 local government areas, which would amount to 880 centres across the state.
A Village Head in Bunkure Local Government Area, Yusuf Labaran Bunkure, also called for greater empowerment and support for traditional institutions, arguing that District, Ward and Village Heads are strategically positioned to identify the local factors encouraging young people to embark on unsafe migration journeys.
He raised concern about the activities of individuals locally described as migration “agents”, who he said sometimes persuade people to undertake dangerous journeys by presenting migration as an easy route to economic prosperity.
Similarly, the District Head of Darmanawa in Tarauni Local Government Area, Comrade Jamil Wada, said traditional institutions and local authorities were already intensifying community sensitisation on the dangers of irregular migration.
Participants at the dialogue agreed to organise town-hall meetings involving traditional rulers, community leaders, civil society organisations, youths, women, parents and security agencies.
The meetings are expected to provide communities with platforms to discuss the causes and consequences of irregular migration and develop practical, community-based responses.
The stakeholders stressed that tackling dangerous migration would require more than warnings, with sustained investment in skills, jobs, education, community awareness and safe migration pathways needed to give young people realistic alternatives.
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