The Kano State Hisbah Board have moved to tighten health safeguards ahead of a planned mass wedding, with the Hisbah Board announcing compulsory medical screening for 3,000 prospective couples selected for the programme.
The exercise, which will cover 1,500 men and 1,500 women, is aimed at certifying the health status of participants before the marriages are conducted under the state-backed initiative.
The Deputy Commander-General of the Hisbah Board, Sheikh Mujahedeen Aminudeen, disclosed the plan in a telephone interview on Friday, stressing that the screening is a non-negotiable requirement for all beneficiaries.
According to him, the tests will include checks for HIV/AIDS, hepatitis, genotype compatibility, and drug use, as part of efforts to prevent future health complications within the marriages.
Aminudeen said the mass wedding is being organised by the Kano State Government under Governor Abba Yusuf, targeting vulnerable groups across the state.
He explained that beneficiaries are largely drawn from less-privileged backgrounds, including widows, divorcees and spinsters, in line with the programme’s social support objectives.
Beyond facilitating the marriages, the state government is also providing financial and material assistance to the couples to ease the transition into married life.
“Each bride is expected to receive a set of beds with mattresses and pillows, as well as N100,000 cash to start up a business of her own after collecting N100,000 dowry from the government,” he said.
He, however, warned that failure to participate in the screening exercise would lead to automatic disqualification from the programme.
The Kano mass wedding scheme, first introduced during the administration of former governor Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, is designed to reduce social pressures, support vulnerable women, and promote stable family structures in the state.