Earlier this year, Jamilu Ahmad, a primary school teacher, rushed his 60-year-old father, a farmer, to Kuchi Primary Health Care for urgent medical attention. His father needed surgery, but the Kuchi health centre lacked doctors and adequate medical facilities.

The hospital admitted him but had to call a doctor from Koko General Hospital, who arrived the next day.

“Apart from this hospital, in case of an emergency, we take our patients to Koko General Hospital in Kebbi State or MSF Hospital in Maiyama. The main challenges we face are the lack of skilled surgeons and the lack of electricity. We had to use a hand fan to ease his heat,” Ahmad explained.

   

Despite a contract worth N167,015,563.36 awarded to Ahasin Construction & Supply Ltd in 2021 for upgrading the Kuchi Primary Health Centre to a General Hospital, the project remains incomplete. The contractor dug two soak-away pits and built a dining space and laundry, neither of which reached completion.

Musa Muhammad, a community health worker, explained that they left some needs of the project unattended. He said only the staff quarters’ windows were replaced with burglar-proofing, while two holes were dug for the soak-away and an unfinished kitchen and laundry.

“We have healthcare workers living in dilapidated staff quarters. We don’t have doctors, so we refer patients to either Koko, Birnin Kebbi or Sokoto, which is over a two-hour journey,” Muhammad added.

The hospital suffers from a lack of doctors, infrastructural deficits, lack of electricity, a non-functional ambulance, and dilapidated staff quarters. Patients’ caregivers often have to search for transportation because of the lack of an ambulance.

“No projects have been done here. They claim to have spent N127 million, but no project was executed,” Musa said. He noted that only labourers appeared sporadically on site, promising progress, but the facilities remain incomplete.

    

The community leader of Kuchi, Yamman Kuchi echoed similar concerns. He highlighted the shortage of doctors and the high number of patients from neighbouring villages, who often must be transferred to Koko General Hospital or Birnin Kebbi.

“When the project was starting, I met with the contractor and the Ministry of Health, but I have not heard from the contractor since. We are now trying to set up a health committee to take care of healthcare matters and follow up on such projects,” he said.

He urged the government to provide the necessary infrastructure and upgrade the hospital to a General Hospital.

 

A resident of Kuchi, Bashar Musa, shared another example of medical inadequacies: his neighbour had to be transferred to Koko for treatment of a swollen body due to the lack of medical expertise in Kuchi.

“They don’t do surgeries in the hospital, but they can gather patients needing operations and call a surgeon from Koko general hospital to perform the procedures,” Musa said.

When contacted, Aminu Maigona, the contractor with Ahasin Construction Ltd, who received the Kuchi health centre contract, claimed that his brother had used his company to secure the contract. 

His brother, Usman Maigona, then transferred the contract to Alhaji Kabiru Dalla. Dalla confirmed that he took over the project but claimed he was not directly supervising it, advising the reporter to reach out to the Ministry for more details as he is not ready to give out any information about the contract. 

Bashir Bello, Director of Planning at the Ministry of Health, stated that the project was initiated by the previous administration and was subsequently abandoned. He promised to check the project’s documents for further details, as the location is over 200 kilometres from Sokoto.

The Director of Planning for the Ministry of Health, Bashir Bello, stated that he is a new director, and he knows that the past administration awarded the project. He added that since he became the director, neither the contractor nor the community leader has approached him about the project.

Poor Funding and Dilapidated Library Affects Research Productivity in Sokoto State

On 7th June 2024, on a visit to the Sokoto State Library Complex, it was found in a dilapidated state, full of outdated textbooks and old furniture. The few students present brought their own books, and the E-library was locked.

Aminu Abubakar, a librarian, explained that students use the library only for personal study, and not for research or further reading, as the available materials are outdated. He noted that there are only outdated textbooks, and the library is suffering from a lack of electricity.

He further explained that since the establishment of the E-library; it has remained locked, and the computers have developed faults because of lack of use. The library faces additional issues such as lack of chairs and tables, shortage of funds, poor government funding, lack of electricity, and a dilapidated building.

“When the engineering faculty was introduced at UDUS, engineering students visited the library to search for relevant research materials but found none. The same applies to students in Mass Communication and Economics. The government must update and equip the library with the latest books, journals, and proper infrastructure, including electricity,” he stated.

Aminu revealed that the last time new furniture was provided for the library was during the 2005-2006 administration of Attahiru Dalhatu Bafarawa. He also mentioned that the library no longer receives newspapers, and the newspaper reading section now feels as desolate as a graveyard.

Students no longer submited projects and the existing ones are outdated. There are no research projects in computer science, engineering, and other subjects, making the library a place to read personal books rather than a hub of research and innovation.

Ibrahim Na’Allah, a master’s student at Usmanu Danfodiyo University Sokoto, stressed the importance of a functional E-library in the digital age, arguing that students should have access to online research materials to replace outdated physical books.

He explained that if operational, the e-library would provide students, researchers, and PhD candidates with access to global research work, journals, and updated textbooks online, which is crucial as most of the physical textbooks are obsolete.

Na’Allah also highlighted the need for infrastructure improvements in the library. He urged the authorities to ensure a steady supply of electricity, equip the e-library with standard laptops and computer systems, and fix the air conditioning and fans. Additionally, he mentioned that the furniture in the library, which is nearly 19 years old, needs to be replaced.

“This will create a conducive environment for readers and researchers, encouraging them to spend more time in the library. The government needs to fix this to promote research and innovation in the state,” he said.

Sanni Sahabi, a 300-level student of Environmental Resources Management, shared his experience, stating that he brings textbooks from home to study, as there are no relevant books in the library for his course. 

He urged the state government to invest in education, restock the e-library with updated laptops and systems, and fill the bookshelves with  up-to-date textbooks to enhance research and development in the state.

Zaki Jekada, the contractor from Minax Multi-Concept Limited, revealed that N48,625,867.00 was allocated for the establishment of the e-library, and that 50 computers had been supplied. He added that there was an official launch and handover of the project, attended bywith attendees from the Ministry of Science and Technology.

However, when informed that the e-library remains locked and that the computer systems are developing faults, Jekada stated that this was not his responsibility. He claimed that the issue arose from the absence of computer experts to manage the facility, something he had advised the authorities to address by hiring a specialist.

When asked if the contractor used a million naira for each computer system, Jekada replied that the contract was for establishing the e-library, not just purchasing computers. He suggested that the reporter contact the ministry for further details and requested not to be contacted again.

Several attempts to reach the Sokoto State Commissioner for Higher Education, Abdullahi Aminu, went unanswered. The commissioner did, however, respond to a text message requesting specific information about the contract. After the details were provided, no further response was received by the time of filing this report.