Jigawa: 9,000 applicants compete for 500 teaching jobs

The race for 500 teaching positions under the Jigawa State Government’s J-Tsangaya programme has attracted more than 9,000 graduates and NCE holders.

The recruitment process has entered the Computer-Based Test stage, with examinations conducted at designated centres in Dutse, Hadejia and Gumel.

The Executive Secretary of the Jigawa State Tsangaya Education Board, Abubakar Maje, disclosed this on Sunday while monitoring the exercise in the three locations.

Maje explained that 3,150 applicants were selected from the larger pool to take the CBT, after which 500 candidates would be picked for employment.

He said the recruitment was intended to provide the manpower needed for the state’s Almajiri Free Zone Programme, which is targeting more than 5,000 children for enrolment in a structured learning environment.

The programme is designed to combine Qur’anic education with conventional subjects and vocational skills, with the broader objective of reducing the number of children engaged in street begging.

Beyond classroom education, beneficiaries are expected to receive accommodation and healthcare while undergoing skills development aimed at helping them become self-sufficient.

Maje said three mega Tsangaya schools had been designated for the programme in Dutse, Kafin Hausa and Ringim. Each of the facilities is expected to accommodate approximately 1,500 children.

Pupils at the centres will receive instruction in Qur’anic studies as well as English, Mathematics, Basic Science and Computer Studies. Vocational education will also form part of the curriculum.

The executive secretary said the 500 recruits would include teachers for conventional subjects and instructors responsible for Qur’anic education.

He said the initiative was part of the state’s efforts to modernise the Tsangaya system without abandoning its traditional foundation.

Jigawa currently has 5,481 traditional Tsangaya schools, alongside 130 integrated schools, seven modern Tsangaya schools and three mega schools, according to Maje.

Meanwhile, candidates who sat for the CBT described the exercise as smooth but urged the government to increase the number of available vacancies.

Musa Ibrahim, one of the candidates in Dutse, said expanding the recruitment to 1,000 teachers would give more qualified applicants an opportunity.

Another candidate, Aisha Bala, who took the test in Hadejia, similarly appealed for an increase in the recruitment slots, citing the high number of applicants.

Residents also welcomed the programme, with community leaders calling for the establishment of additional mega Tsangaya schools in other parts of the state.

Sani Adamu, a community leader in Gumel, said expanding the programme would allow more Almajirai to access formal education, religious instruction and vocational training.

The programme forms part of Jigawa’s broader efforts to tackle out-of-school children and create a more structured model for integrating traditional Islamic education with mainstream learning and practical skills.