Kano Govt Spends N1.5bn on Mass Wedding for 1,500 Couples

The Kano State Government says it spent N1.5 billion to organise the mass wedding of 1,500 couples under its Auren Gata programme, with each couple receiving financial and household support to help them establish stable homes.

Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf disclosed this during a reception and the distribution of furniture and other support items to the newly married couples in Kano.

Yusuf said a significant portion of the expenditure was used for medical screening of all the brides and grooms as part of measures to protect their health and the wellbeing of their future children.

Under the programme, each couple received N100,000 as dowry and an additional N100,000 capital grant to enable them to start small businesses and achieve a measure of economic independence.

The governor said the government also provided household furniture and other essential items, including beds and mattresses, as well as foodstuffs and other commodities to cushion the economic difficulties the couples might encounter during the early stages of their marriages.

He urged the newlyweds to exercise patience and uphold justice, fairness, mutual respect and peaceful coexistence in their homes.

According to him, marriage is an act of worship, and couples should build their homes in accordance with the teachings of the Holy Qur’an and the Sunnah of Prophet Muhammad.

“Mutual respect, patience and tolerance are essential for sustaining peaceful and successful marriages,” the governor said.

Yusuf explained that the Auren Gata programme was one of the major promises made by his administration during its campaign across the 44 local government areas of Kano State ahead of the 2023 general elections.

The Chairman of the North-West Governors’ Forum and Katsina State Governor, Umar Dikko Radda, commended Yusuf for initiating the programme, describing it as an intervention aimed at improving the welfare and living conditions of residents.

Earlier, the Commander-General of the Kano State Hisbah Board, Sheikh Dr Aminu Ibrahim Daurawa, said the mass wedding initiative had attracted recognition both within Nigeria and beyond.

Daurawa said the programme was designed not only to provide financial assistance to young couples but also to prepare them for the responsibilities and challenges associated with married life.

Some beneficiaries, including Muhammed Bello and Hadiza Ibrahim, expressed appreciation to the Kano State Government for introducing the initiative.

They urged the government to sustain and expand the programme so that more couples could benefit from the mass wedding scheme.