Begging enterprise: A growing trend among Igbo Christians in Nsukka Urban

Abstract

It is obvious that the practice of begging is growing exponentially and changing into various forms mostly among the Christians in the Nsukka area. Although begging has long been in existence in the Nsukka area, it has never been encouraged. Financial assistance from family and relatives usually prevents an indigent person from begging in the street. Giving alms to the poor is regarded as a religious duty by many people. But, some beggars take advantage of people’s sympathy and thus the practice of begging is encouraged. Many scholars have written about the increase in the number of beggars in Igboland and attributed it to a number of factors such as poverty and ill health. Some see it as an indictment on government. However, this present study attributes the increase in the number of beggars in Nsukka’s cultural area to religion, laziness as against hard work, individualism as against communalism, social disorganisation because of urbanisation. These beggars who do nothing other than to beg are less productive, and consequently contribute nothing to the nation’s economy. They are a nuisance in the society, as some engage in all kinds of immoral activities that degrade human society. This study therefore attempts to explore the growing trend of begging among Igbo Christians in Nsukka Urban. It aims to identify the different dimensions of begging and the reasons behind this practice. A qualitative phenomenological method was employed in this study.Contribution: The findings of this study revealed that poverty is not the cause of begging among Christians in Nsukka but rather laziness, individualism, and religious mendicancy, among others. It recommends that the Igbo people should go back to the values that bind them together.

Child Trafficking in Africa: Reimagining the Problem

“…The system has contributed significantly to Nigeria's out-of-school children population, which is currently 20 million, making up more than 45 percent of the number of out-of-school children in West Africa (Akinkuotu 2022). In several parts of the Southeast and Southwest of Nigeria, children are being hired from indigent parents and turned into tools for organized begging (Ugwu and Okoye 2022). In Benin, investigative reports on the trafficking of Beninese children indicate that parents in certain rural communities hand over their children to traffickers in exchange for $USD 250 (Mark 2012).…”