By Babaji Usman, WikiTimes
In Bauchi State’s mining communities, children as young as 10 abandon classrooms for mining sites. They toil alongside adults, extracting sand and breaking rocks under the scorching sun, hoping to scrape together enough for their families to survive. For these children, education is a distant dream distorted by the immediate demands of poverty. WikkiTimes’ Babaji Usman writes.
Sulaiman, 12, under a scorching sun, carries a small bucket of sand on his head, balancing it carefully as he navigates the rough ground.
His face stained with filth and sweat, the young miner endures long hours under the hot sands and mud at Jirr mining site about 25 kilometers from Bauchi, the State capital.
His hands blistered from shoveling heavy loads of sand to extract monoxide with his aspirations buried beneath the weight of his family’s economic struggles.
Like many others, Sulaiman’s parents, unable to make ends meet, withdrew him from Nadabo Primary School, seeing mining in their community as a lifeline in their fight against poverty.
The children miss out on education and face the risks of accidents, health hazards, and exploitation at the sites.
The Rise Of School-Child Miners
For many families in such communities, the immediate income outweighs the intangible benefits of education.
Here, in Jirr, children as young as 10 work in sand pits, shoveling and carrying loads under the scorching sun and soggy pits in some instances.
Like Sulaiman, Abdulrahman Musa, a 13-year-old boy, shared his daily routine with this reporter. “I used to go to school,” he said, his hands calloused from sand mining days.
Abdurrahman Musa and his friends at Jirr mining site
“But my father said we need money to eat, so I had to stop. Now I work here almost every day,” he added.
For communities like Jirr and Wandi in Dass LG of Bauchi State, the cycle of poverty deepens with many school children lost to the mines, jeopardizing education which is the very foundation of their better future.
In GDSS Wandi, the local Upper Basic school, over half of the students did not show up in a dimly lit classroom when this reporter visited in November 2024.
“Our classrooms are nearly empty. Parents prioritize mining because it solves some of their immediate needs, but it’s at the expense of their children’s future,” Malam Husaini, the administrative officer at the school lamented.
According to the officer, the ripple effects of sand mining in schools extend beyond individual families, noting that the dwindling number of students has brought some schools, particularly in Dass to the brink of closure.
According to school officials in Wandi, the school has seen attendance drop by more than 50% over the past year.
Schoolchildren processing sand
Some classes are empty, as families pull their children out to contribute to household incomes.
Malam Husaini identified sand mining as a leading factor contributing to student absenteeism in schools in the mining communities.
“Very few students are attending classes now, and this trend is alarming,” Husaini said, urging the government and parents to take action to address the issue.
He emphasized that poverty, the root cause of the problem, must be tackled through comprehensive measures by governments at all levels.
Husaini’s position is supported by the World Bank report that about 87 million Nigerians lived below the poverty line in 2024.
A recent report by PricewaterhouseCoopers International Limited (PwC) said 13 million more Nigerians could be pushed below the poverty line due to some government policies in 2025.
UNICEF report also confirmed that children from the poorest families benefit least from national education funding.
Children are often the first to bear the brunt of this crisis. Parents, struggling with economic hardship, often see no option but to involve their children in mining activities.
Husaini further called for initiatives to alleviate the hardships faced by families in the region, stressing that unless the economic struggles of communities are mitigated, efforts to keep children in school will remain futile.
Out-Of-School Children In Bauchi
Analysis by StatiSence on a survey conducted by Nigeria’s Multidimensional Poverty Index, a private data hub in Nigeria, showed that Bauchi had about 1.37 million out-of-school children in 2022.
In 2023, Governor Bala Mohammed in his half-hour presentation, claimed that the number of out-of-school children had dropped to about 700,000 thousand.
He said, “We have so far leveraged the number of out-of-school children from 2.3 million in 2018 when I took office to merely 700,000.”
However, the governor did not clarify how they arrived at the figure, even though the new figure is still alarming.
The state government officials in 2024 also claimed that the state recorded a drastic reduction in the number of out-of-school children, bringing the total figure down to 521,000, though they did not provide any evidence on the ground that shows the changes.
Women, Girls In The Mines
The crisis has also drawn women into mining, compounding their already heavy burdens.
They combine mining labor with household responsibilities, often working long hours in hazardous conditions.
Fatima Umar, a widow in her early 40s, works alongside her teenage daughters in the mines.
“We know it’s dangerous, but what choice do we have? If we don’t work, we don’t eat. We need the money to eat, so my son and three daughters go to the mines instead of school.”
Women at the mining site at Jirr
This trend is widespread across several communities in the state, with economic hardship forcing families to prioritize short-term survival over long-term opportunities.
Like their boy counterparts, the girls exchange their quest for education for mining in their efforts to survive and support their families.
Halima Usman, a 35-year-old mother of four in Toro LG, described her ordeal after the death of her husband in a society where most of her prospective helpers were reeling in poverty themselves. “My husband passed on two years ago,” she said.
“We have nothing. My son brings home N5,000 from the mine every week. It’s not much, but it keeps us alive.”
In Bayara, a community on the outskirts of Bauchi, stands a sand-processing machine. Women and children push to the point with their faces etched with fatigue after long hours spent laboring at mining pits.
Some children, as young as 10, can be seen burdened by the weight of labor far beyond their years.
Women, often carrying babies strapped to their backs, work tirelessly with bags of sand in packages.
Monoxide extracting machine at Bayara
An investigation revealed that besides Bauchi, Toro, and Dass local governments, illegal mining is taking place in Alkaleri, Ningi, and some parts of Tafawa Balewa.
More prevalent in 20 different sites in Toro where tin ore, gold, columbite, and monoxide, among other minerals, are mined.
However, the residents of the communities expressed concern over the influx of illegal miners from Zamfara, Niger, Kaduna and foreigners to the mining communities, hence, gradually becoming a hideout for criminals.
Bauchi Ban Illegal Mining
In a bid to curb illegal mining and its adverse effects, the Bauchi State Government in July 2024, banned any unauthorized mining of the resources in the state.
However, the ban’s enforcement has been weak, and illegal mining flourished, with rural areas becoming hotspots for the illicit trade, and with devastating impacts on children’s education in addition to other economic, social, and environmental ills.
The ban was aimed at preserving the state’s mineral resources and protecting communities from environmental degradation and for security reasons.
“The ban was a good idea, but it has no impact here,” said Malam Yusuf, a father of nine in the Rimin-Zayam community in Toro.
“The truth is there is no alternative provided. The people are hungry, how can you stop them without providing them with what to eat?”
With the absence of law enforcement, mining activities moved further.
Here, a joint at Goltukurwa, a community along Bauchi-Tafawa Balewa Road serves as the hub where the mined sand is transported for processing to extract monoxide or to the local markets.
Goltukurwa mined sand loading joint
Children, like adults, are not spared in this labor as they work for hours to earn a living and support families. The lure of quick financial gains drew them away from schools and into mining pits.
Security Challenges Linked To Mining
One of the most pressing consequences of illegal mining is its contribution to the growing insecurity.
Mining sites, often located in remote and poorly governed areas, serve as hubs for armed groups, including bandits and insurgents.
These groups exploit the lucrative nature of mining to fund their activities, purchasing weapons and sustaining operations.
WikkiTimes reports that criminals and bandits that terrorize Ningi LGA of Bauchi State do visit some mining sites in the Burra district of the State.
The Zamfara gold prey is a more explicit example, where competition over control of mining sites has fueled violent conflicts, leading to loss of lives, mass displacement, and destruction of livelihoods.
In some cases, corrupt officials and security personnel have been complicit, either turning a blind eye or actively benefiting from the illegal trade.
Recently, Senator Adams Oshimole alleged that some retired generals in the country are among the top beneficiaries of the illegal mining business.
Environmental And Economic Effects
The unchecked mining activities have also left a trail of environmental harm. Vast stretches of farmland have been rendered unusable, water sources contaminated, and landscapes scarred by deep pits and erosion.
Degraded land by miners
Women fetching contaminated water at Jirr mining site for use
“Our lands are gone,” said Alhaji Buba, a farmer. “The soil is no longer good for cultivation, and the rivers are dirty. Even our livestock can’t drink the water.”
The environmental consequences further fuel the poverty cycle, pushing more families into mining as agriculture becomes less viable.
Economically, the informal nature of illegal mining deprives governments of substantial revenue.
While these activities generate profits for individuals and criminal networks, they contribute nothing to state coffers.
Jibrin Saleh, a retired head of school services, and one of the stakeholders in Dass, said the sand mining activity has drawn many children out of classrooms.
To mitigate its impact, he explained, efforts are underway at the community level to implement a schedule aimed at balancing education and mining activities.
“We are trying to create a system where students in upper basic schools can engage in mining in the morning and attend school in the afternoon. Similarly, pupils in primary schools would mine in the afternoon after returning from their morning classes,” Saleh said.
Experts’ Perspectives
Experts believe that addressing the illegal mining crisis requires a multi-pronged approach.
Dr. Rabi’u Barau, a sociologist at Bauchi State University, argues that education and livelihood programs must go hand-in-hand with enforcement measures.
“You cannot just ban mining without providing alternatives. These families need sustainable ways to earn a living. Combining mining with education can work,” he added.
He added that community engagement is also critical. “Traditional leaders, often influential in rural settings, can play a key role in advocating for education and discouraging child labor.
According to Dr Rabiu, the government’s efforts to address illegal mining are also undermined by a deep-seated mistrust between the authorities and the people.
Agency Speaks
In response to children abandoning classes, the Bauchi State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB) said it has intensified efforts to combat the menace through community engagement and collaboration with traditional leaders.
Abdullahi Mohammed, the SUBEB spokesman outlined ongoing strategies to address the out-of-school children crisis.
“We are actively working to address it. We have initiated a campaign in collaboration with community stakeholders to tackle this pressing issue in particular and the general issue of out-of-school children which is a nationwide challenge.”
He further explained that the agency is leveraging traditional leadership to amplify its efforts.
“At the end of last year (2024), our Chairman met with the Emirs, who pledged their support and assured us they would cascade the campaign down to their subordinates. This partnership is vital in ensuring the message reaches every corner of the state,” the spokesman added.
Ministry Clarifies
Sale Umar, the information officer for the Bauchi State Ministry of Natural Resources, clarified that the government’s intention was not to impose an outright ban on mining activities.
Instead, he explained, the focus is on formalizing and regulating the operations of local artisanal miners to ensure better oversight and organization.
“The government aims to make mining activities official and structured. Local artisans need to be identified and supported to transform their work into formal businesses,” the officer told WikkiTimes.
He revealed that the state had signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with a Chinese firm to aid in the formalization process. This initiative, he said, is designed to streamline operations, ensure security, and enable the government to monitor activities effectively.
He added that the ministry is also encouraging artisan miners to form associations, which would allow them access to mentorship from technical officers and support from the Ministry of Commerce and Industry.
The associations, according to the officer, would link miners to entrepreneurship programs that align with federal initiatives.
He, however, emphasized that mining activities fall under the jurisdiction of the federal government, which complicates the state’s ability to enforce policies independently.
While the state government said it is working toward formalization, the continued involvement of school-aged children in mining remains a pressing concern, emphasizing the need to prioritize education and protect minors from exploitation.
This report is produced with support from Civic Media Lab (CML).