The governor made the announcement during a meeting with the state's task force on COVID-19 on Sunday, April 19, 2020, according to a report by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN).

The Federal Government had last month ordered that all schools be closed, and Ganduje announced a 7-day lockdown of the state days after its index case was announced.

The governor said on Sunday that the existence of almajiri schools is constituting a threat to the state's efforts towards minimising the spread of the disease that has infected over 2 million people across the world.

He said a committee has been set up to coordinate how almajiris will be taken care of to reduce the risk of infection and/or spreading the coronavirus. The committee will be chaired by the state's Commissioner for Local Government, Murtala Garo.

Ganduje said almajiris from Bauchi, Katsina, Jigawa, Kaduna and Niger Republic will be evacuated back to their homes, while those who are indigenes will be enrolled into their neighbourhood conventional schools.

He said the ones who beg and sleep on the streets, markets and under bridges will be taken to boarding schools and taken care of.

"We have complete records of all almajiris and their schools in Kano," Ganduje said.

Over 2,000 almajiris, Ganduje said, have gone back to their states. The governor warned that parents who resist the government's initiative will be charged to court.

Kano has recorded 36 coronavirus cases in just one week, the third highest in the country behind Lagos (376), and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja (88). One death has also been recorded in the state.

As of April 19, Nigeria has recorded 627 coronavirus cases in 21 states and the FCT. 170 people have recovered and been discharged, but 21 people have died.