Olayemi Esan
The United Nations in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development are poised to create corridors of hope by providing durable Humanitarian Response for the affected population in the North East.
The United Nations Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator, Edward Kallon, made this known at the launch of $1billion targeted at 6.5 million most vulnerable people in Borno, Adamawa, and Yobe states that the only solution to the crises in the area was to prevent humanitarian crises by embracing peace.
Kallon said, the humanitarian crisis in Borno, Adamawa and Yobe states in Northeast Nigeria is expected to persist in 2021, ongoing conflicts will severely affects millions of people who remain vulnerable to displacement, impoverishment and threats of violence. About 1.92million people are displaced internally, and 257,000 living as refugees in neighbouring Cameroon, Chad and Niger. 54 percent of the IDP people are taking shelter across host communities and 81 percent of the IDPs of whom lived in IDP camps.
According to him, The year 2021 marks the 12th year into the conflict and our 6th year of collective response to dire humanitarian needs of an immense extent. Millions of people are affected by insecurity and violence hence there is a growing need to assist displaced people otherwise affected by the crisis in north-eastern Nigeria through the 2021 Humanitarian Response Plan.
He said, “We will continue to search for a durable solution to the crises through advocacy, dialogue and peace building. This is the time for stakeholders to use this opportunity to solve the problems in the crises areas. In 2020, over 3 million people were provided with basic humanitarian needs. Today, 8.7 million people are in need of humanitarian aid.”
Speaking, the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Sadiya Umar Farouq, said the Federal Government of Nigeria remains committed to addressing the plight of the affected people and in leading the response to ensure the safety, security and provision of lifesaving assistance to those in need, in collaboration with international humanitarian community.
“We are facing additional challenges in terms of security and access for humanitarian partners which is why we have developed the National Humanitarian Development Peace Framework. I am encouraged that the NHDPF emphasizes promoting longer-term durable solutions. We must always look forward, beyond the immediate crisis, to ensure that we help people, re-establish their lives and strengthen communities, so that we can reduce dependence on aid and promote resilience and self-reliance.”
The minister pledged federal government’s continued support and cooperation of the humanitarian community to address the suffering of the people in Borno, Adamawa and Yobe states as elaborated in the Humanitarian Response Plan and articulated in the National Humanitarian Development Peace Framework.
In his remark, Tunde Ojei, Country Director of the International Rescue Committee said the main challenge we need to address jointly for 2021 lies in looking at longer term solutions, but the ramping insecurity makes this a challenging task and constantly reminds us of the imperative to save lives and protect people. Therefore, we need to avoid working is silos but have a more cohesive approach and ownership in addressing the situation.
