The state government allocates roughly 1 million naira (approximately $735 or £544) per couple participating in the program.
Hisbah reports that the assistance package provides essential household items required to set up a new home, including beds, mattresses, bedding, pillows, furniture, and food supplies.
Each bride is granted a dowry of 100,000 naira, and an additional 100,000 naira is provided as startup capital to promote small‑scale entrepreneurship and enable the couple to become financially independent after marriage.
All prospective couples must undergo comprehensive medical examinations, covering HIV, hepatitis, pregnancy, and genotype compatibility tests, before being cleared for participation.
Aminudeen disclosed that some applicants have been disqualified after it was discovered they had falsified their medical test results.
In one instance, a prospective bride attempted to present her brother as the groom in order to qualify for the scheme.
Local journalist Yusuf Ali Abdallah, who has reported on the mass weddings for years, said Nigeria’s struggling economy has been driving desperation among many applicants this year.
‘Because marriage requires spending and the nation’s economy is currently weak,’ he told the BBC.
This situation drives some individuals to seek inclusion on the list.
A couple that was already married once tried to present themselves as new participants before being detected and removed from the program, Abdallah reported.
Other opportunists have attempted to exploit the desperation of applicants seeking inclusion on the sponsored list, which was announced two weeks ago.
One anonymous resident of Kano reported being asked to pay a bribe to secure a spot on the list.
‘However, I later learned that those who solicited the money were not staff of Hisbah,’ he said.
He and his fiancée were not selected for this August’s wedding, but he said he intends to try again next year.
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