By Emegwoako C. Paschal
The district head of Gagi in the Sokoto South Local Government Area, Alhaji Sani Umar-Jabbi, has urged Nigerians to use family planning to rein in the country’s population growth.
At a campaign on peaceful coexistence awareness that was held in Sokoto by the NGO Youth for Resolution and Peace Building Initiative, Umar-Jabbi made the appeal, he said;
“Efforts to overcome the present economic and security challenges will hardly be overcome without appropriate population growth control mechanisms, meaningful educational and economic empowerment planning for the population.”
He pointed that population growth in the nation is outpacing economic expansion, and productive agricultural fields have been replaced by urban areas, owing to the fact that pastoralists have to travel far to find grazing areas, “such acts have led to the growth of various forms of criminality, including the worrying banditry.
Umar-Jabbi noted that youths prefer to pursue government jobs in order to amass quick money rather than starting creative and productive businesses like farming and other relevant skill jobs known in our communities, adding that;
“the majority of them, along with our unemployed youths living on the streets, are subjected to luxurious lifestyles that also draw them to crime when the desired money is not present.”
He claimed that the country’s social and security issues could be managed by using the family planning control mechanism, as a good family planning program will help families and government agencies address security concerns and ensure effective resource management.
In order to address the growing population trends and security concerns, he called for increased investment in family planning services.
Mr. Nuraddeen Bodinga, another speaker, urged community assistance in addressing the ongoing security issues, as well as the need to exercise caution and always support initiatives aimed at defending the country.
Dr. Jabbi Kilgori, the District Head of Kilgore, urged traditional chieftains to imitate his initiatives in which he collaborated with financial institutions and other authorities to provide people with empowerment loans, educational opportunities, and surveillance teams to support them in leading productive lives.
Malam Abubakar Mailato, the NGO’s coordinator, inaugurated the NGO’s peace advisors to coordinate activities in three senatorial zones in Sokoto state and awarded Umar-Jabbi, Chairman of the Sokoto State Basic Education Board, as Peace Ambassador.
Others include Hajia A’isha Maina, a former director of the State Female Education Board, Alhaji Kabiru Sadaukin Gagi, a former special adviser to Governor Aminu Tambuwal, and others.
