title: Social studies of destitutes (beggars) in Nigeria: Lagos experience.
abstract: A study of 183 beggars and destitutes in Lagos is presented. Their mean age was 36.3 years; and there was a preponderance of male over female. Majority of the beggars were Hausa and their religion was Muslim. Seventy-three (51.8%) of the beggars and destitutes attended Arabic (Koranic) schools only while 53 (37.6%) had no schooling at all. There was a statistically significant difference between the educational attainment of males and females (p less than 0.001). Monogamous marriage was popular among the beggars even though their religion (Islam) permitted polygamous one. The number of children was two per beggar which was minimal compared with the large families reported among beggars in Zaria. Child wastage was common among these children maybe because of their parents' ignorance, poverty and disease. The urgent establishment of a National Rehabilitation Centre, among other measures, is recommended as a lasting solution to the problem of begging and destitution in Lagos.
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D005006:Ethnicity; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009549:Nigeria; D011203:Poverty; D012067:Religion; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors