Government-sponsored mass weddings have become common in many parts of northern Nigeria. From Kano to Katsina, Jigawa and Sokoto states, local and state governments have prioritised the allocation of huge sums of funds to organise mass weddings for widows, divorcees, children of the less privileged and in some cases, orphans whose parents were killed in the ongoing security challenges in the region.

Recently, the Kano State Government allocated N2.5 billion for the sponsorship of mass weddings for 2025. Kebbi State also announced on Sunday that it would spend N54 million to marry off 300 couples on February 27.

This action sparked mixed reactions from supporters and critics of the government. Its supporters argue that the initiative serves as a means of curbing immorality, reducing prostitution, and assisting poor families in marrying off their children. They see it as a social intervention that aligns with the values and needs of the people of the state. However, critics view the programme as a misplaced priority, given the myriad of pressing issues confronting the state such as the alarming number of out-of-school children, a struggling healthcare system, insecurity and widespread youth unemployment.

This programme is not new. It was first introduced in 2011 by the administration of then-Governor Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso and soon gained widespread acceptance among the populace and spread to other northern states.

Kano State, for instance, which introduced the programme, justified it as a response to the rising number of divorces in a state that has been labelled the divorce capital of Nigeria. In 2008, a planned protest by a group called the Voice of Widows, Divorcees and Orphans of Nigeria (VOWAN) led by Hajiya Altine Abdullahi to showcase the number of divorcees and widows in the state was quickly blocked by the state?s Hisbah Board. Deliberations between the group and the Hisbah eventually prompted what has now become Kano?s mass wedding programme.

However, the fundamental question many often ask is: Why should state governments be responsible for organising mass weddings when there are more urgent socio-economic challenges facing northern Nigeria?

To the various governments? credit, the programme has undergone reforms, including stringent background checks for couples, mandatory medical screenings for HIV, hepatitis, and genotype compatibility, as well as pre- and post-marital counselling. The Hisbah Board and Sunnah Marriage Mediating Councils in the various states have also been involved in monitoring the couples to the extent that Hisbah in Kano once declared that no beneficiary of the mass wedding programme is allowed to divorce his wife without its involvement.

But we believe that 14 years later, it is now imperative to ask whether this intervention has achieved its intended goals. Whether the mass weddings significantly reduced social vices in areas where they are being organised and provided orphans with the needed protection and comfort? Has it reduced the high divorce rate in the region?

What is clear, however, is that despite over a decade of mass wedding sponsorship, northern Nigeria continues to grapple with high divorce rates, economic hardship, unemployment and insecurity. Therefore, it is time for the various state governments in the region to pause and reassess the impact of the programme.

Daily Trust urges that rather than persist with a costly initiative, resources should be redirected to sectors that foster security, economic infrastructure and sustainable human capital development.

Organising mass weddings is akin to applying a band-aid to a deep wound; it does not address the root causes of social instability and marital challenges in the North. This is because marriage is not a solution to poverty?in fact, in many cases, it exacerbates financial struggles, especially when individuals who lack economic independence enter into matrimony relying on government aid.

Marriage entails additional responsibilities that include feeding, clothing, and sheltering a spouse and children. If an individual cannot afford to get married without state support, it is unlikely they will be able to sustain a family.

While the governments provide some financial support to beneficiaries of the mass wedding programme, such assistance is often insufficient in the long run, especially when many small businesses fail due to mounting family expenses and a lack of proper planning.

Rather than spending huge sums on mass weddings, the state and local governments should invest in critical economic infrastructure, such as electricity and industrial development, to create employment and enhance entrepreneurship for the youths. A thriving economic environment where there is security of lives and properties will empower young people and even divorcees and widows to afford their own weddings without state intervention.

A strong and self-sufficient community can contribute more to the economy, as private weddings would then generate business opportunities for other local and small businesses and service providers.

Daily Trust firmly believes that the best form of empowerment is economic independence, not government-sponsored weddings. The state governments in northern Nigeria should prioritise job creation and business opportunities for their hardworking youths. The future of northern Nigeria lies in its people?s ability to build sustainable livelihoods, not in mass wedding ceremonies. Therefore, we reiterate that our youths need jobs, not spouses. (Daily Trust Editorial)

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