‘False narrative that Northern leaders never promoted education’ — Ahmadu Bello’s granddaughter says
By Kunle Sanni –
Hajiya Hafsatu Umaru Shinkafi, granddaughter of the late Premier of the Northern Region, Sir Ahmadu Bello, has dismissed claims that past Northern leaders neglected education, describing such assertions as “totally false.”
Speaking ahead of the 70th Anniversary of Free Universal Primary Education, organized by Independent Newspapers and scheduled for Thursday, October 9, 2025, at Eko Hotels and Suites, Lagos, Shinkafi said historical records clearly show that Northern leaders were deeply committed to advancing both male and female education.
“The narrative that Northern leaders, from the beginning, never promoted education is totally false,” she said. “There’s a lot of misconception from our neighbours and other citizens of the country that, since the Sardauna’s time, Northern leaders have never really been interested in promoting education. I strongly disagree with that.”
Citing her grandfather’s legacy, Shinkafi emphasized that Sir Ahmadu Bello was a strong advocate of girl-child education at a time when it was almost non-existent in the North.
“He knew the real message of the Qur’an and the Sunnah. There’s nothing further from the truth than to say Islam does not encourage female education or empowerment,” she said in a report published by Daily Independence newspaper. “Even his own children — adopted and biological, male and female — were all sent to school. It was only natural for him to extend that to the wider population.”
Shinkafi further noted that the early regional leaders of Nigeria, including those from the North, were driven by a spirit of “healthy competition” that fostered development, not the divisive politics of today.
“In the First Republic, there was developmental competition — not the mudslinging and backward competition we see now,” she said. “When one region established a university or industry, others followed. That kind of rivalry drove progress.”
While acknowledging that cultural and ideological factors have contributed to declining interest in education in parts of the North today, Shinkafi said earlier governments had put in place several incentives to promote schooling for both boys and girls.
