Niger repatriates 12 foreign, 782 almajirai

The Niger State Government has repatriated 12 foreign and 782 local Almajirai to their countries and states.

The 12 Almajirai were sent to Benin and Niger Republics, while the 782 others were repatriated to different states of the federation.

The government is still keeping two of the Almajirai whose states or nationalities are still not known.

The Commissioner for Education, Hajia Hanatu Salihu, who disclosed this to newsmen at the end of the state executive council meeting held in Minna on Wednesday, said the repatriated Almajirai were screened for the coronavirus pandemic but did not say how many of them were positive or negative.

According to Salihu, the state also received 139 Almajirai from some parts of the country, adding that all the street children were camped, fed and clothed at the Minna Hajj camp.

She disclosed that the state government approved N86 million for the upkeep of the Almajirai.

The state government, she said, has not decided when to reopen schools shut as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, adding that the government is holding meetings with stakeholders on the best approach to the issue.