Sultan voices commitment to girl-child education

The Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar has expressed commitment of the Sultanate Council to girl-child education. The Sultan, who spoke yesterday at the launch of three books on great women scholars of the Caliphate by Dr. Sadiyya Omar, Director Centre for Hausa Studies, Usman Danfodiyo University, Sokoto, said there were plans to establish women’s University for medical sciences.

He said the blueprint for the proposed Women University of Medical Sciences would be out before the end of the year, stating that the groundwork for the initiative had started.

The royal father noted that the university would boost opportunity for women to study medical sciences and produce more female doctors for the benefit of the society, stressing that Islam encouraged women to acquire education, contrary to insinuations in some quarters that the religion was against women education.

The Sultan highlighted the contributions of women scholars of the Caliphate and commended Dr.Sadiyya for her works on them, underscoring the need for scholars to engage in research on the works of past leaders of the Sokoto Caliphate for the benefit of the society.

According to him, the Sultanate Council is publishing the works of Shehu Usman Danfodiyo, Abdullahi Fodiyo and Muhammad Bello in Cairo, Egypt.

He assured that the books would be distributed free to people in Nigeria.

Also speaking at the books’ launch, the wife of Vice President, Hajia Amina Namadi Sambo, said it was heartwarming that the author brought to limelight the contributions and works of women scholars of the Caliphate whom she noted had done well in contributing to humanity.

Hajiya Amina Sambo challenged other women to emulate the author and embark on further research in that direction, appealing to Northern states and private sector to obtain copies of the books and donate to schools.

In his remarks, the former Minister of National Planning and the author’s elder brother Dr. Shamsudeen Usman noted the commitment of the author to women education, saying the works would enhance scholarship in the society.

Governor Aliyu Wamakko of Sokoto State lauded the efforts of the author in bringing to limelight the great women of the caliphate.

Speaking, Dr. Sa’adiyya Omar said research works on the books took six years, explaining that they were the documentation of works of great women scholars of the Caliphate such as Nana Asmau and Modibo Kilo.