It’s been six months since Kano State Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf gave a directive for the immediate construction of a secondary school in Dan-Shayi, a remote village in Rimingado Local Government Area. But despite the promise, the reality on the ground remains unchanged.
The story of Dan-Shayi first drew public attention in November 2024 when Grassroots Parrot reported that the community, which is over 300 years old, has never produced a single secondary school graduate.
With no access to secondary education, most children in the area drop out after completing primary school—if they make it that far.
The report went viral, sparking swift government response. Within 48 hours, Governor Yusuf ordered the then Commissioner for Education, Umar Haruna Doguwa, to visit Dan-Shayi and begin plans for establishing a standard secondary school.
The community’s youth leader, Abubakar Dan-Shayi, confirmed the directive and revealed that villagers had pledged to provide free land for the school’s construction.
But when our correspondent visited Dan-Shayi on April 10, 2025, the situation on the ground painted a different picture—there is still no sign of the promised school.
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Abubakar admitted that the community initially cajoled government officials by claiming they already had land available.
“We feared the government might be discouraged if we said we had no land. So we pretended. After they left, we started collecting donations from house to house. Some gave ₦5,000, others ₦10,000—eventually, we raised ₦1.3 million,” he said.
The land they finally secured was valued at around ₦500,000, but due to the owner’s reluctance to sell; they were forced to pay ₦1.2 million.
“He (the land owner) didn’t want to sell and asked for a price he thought we couldn’t afford. But we were desperate and paid in January. We now have ₦100,000 left from the donations,” Abubakar added.
Despite the community’s efforts and sacrifice, no government official has returned to begin construction.
Following the viral report, Abubakar said some philanthropists and Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) stepped in to dig a manual borehole and build an Islamiyya school. Yet, the critical need for a secondary school remains unmet.
“We’ve tried to provide other essentials like clean water, hoping the government would at least fulfill its promise of a school. But nothing has happened,” Abubakar said.
He estimated that about 2,000 secondary school-aged children currently roam the streets, unable to further their education.
“My daughter is one of them. She used to walk 5 kilometers to a neighboring village for secondary school. But she can only attend for one term each year. During the rainy season, no one can cross the river that connects our village to others,” he lamented.
Shehu Sani, the traditional leader of Dan-Shayi, also expressed deep concern over the delay in implementing the governor’s directive and appealed to the state government to fulfill its promise.
“We are pleading once again. Our children deserve better. Our community deserves hope,” he said.
Adding their voice, some women in the community lamented the long-standing neglect and its toll on girls in the community.
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“For our girls, the cost is even higher; many are married off early because they have no chance to continue their education. How can we empower women when our daughters cannot finish school? We feel abandoned.” They said.
When contacted, the Permanent Secretary of the State Ministry of Education, Bashir Baffa Muhammed, said plans are underway for the construction of schools in the community.
According to him, the Governor has already issued the necessary directives and provided all required approvals for the projects.
“The governor has already given an instruction that those schools should be constructed. All what is required from the governor has been given, so we hope that those projects would be constructed before the end of this year. It is now left for the contractors and local government chairmen to facilitate the process.” Muhammed said.