Governments, private and non-governmental organizations (NGOs), among other humanitarian aid agencies have been making efforts to tackle the problems facing victims of insurgency in the North East through different interventions and programs.
In Borno, a whole ministry, the Ministry of Reconstruction, Rehabilitation and Resettlement, was created, in addition to state and federal government humanitarian bodies, to address the problems arising from the crisis.
International donor organizations working in different areas have moved in to provide immediate and long-term assistance, in addition to domestic interventions and individual assistance by people from across the country.
But despite these efforts, there is still need for more interventions to raise the standard of living of the many displaced households.
Shell, an intercontinental oil and gas company working in Nigeria for several decades, is the latest to reach out to the displaced persons.
On Thursday, the company was in Yobe, one of the northeastern states that was most hit by Boko Haram, to distribute immediate relief materials.
The items include food and non-food items, targeted for 1,200 families in Malamfatori, a community in Damaturu, the state’s capital, with similar intervention in the pipeline for Fika communities.
‘If you take an average of six per household, we are targeting about 14,600 persons in total. Each household will get 25kg of rice, 25 kg of beans, 50 kg bag of maize, soya beans, beverages, one gallon of palm and vegetable oil, sanitary pads, a mat, protein supplement for breastfeeding mothers, among other things,’ Dr. Ferdinand explained.
Dr. Oshonwoh Ebiarede Ferdinand, executive director of House of Renaissance for Health Initiative and one of leaders of the delegation, said it was the first intervention project the company and its affiliates in the north, and that Yobe was chosen because of the humanitarian crisis it is facing.
‘From the needs assessment exercise we took, we are aware that a lot of displaced persons migrated to Damaturu, people from Gulani, Geidam and Gujba, including about 338 settled in Nayinawa alone.
Ferdinand also added that they considered the flood disaster that wrecked many communities in the state, noting that further arrangements with their funders and development partners are being made to come with more interventions.
He explained that the intervention was planned along the company’s venture partners like the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC), Total, AGIP, among others.
The reactions of beneficiaries
A physically challenged Fatsuma Dauda, who is also a mother of two, said it is always difficult to adequately feed her family, noting that the intervention will go a long way in helping.
Suleiman Dalha, another physically challenged IDP, who though was thankful for support, added that ‘it is also important to give us skills and business capital be on our own.’
‘We have consumed the last meal in my house today and I am thinking of where to go find what to eat tomorrow but this donation has saved me, and may Allah reward them,’ Malam Bako, who identified himself as a street beggar, said.
65-year-old Hadiza Mohammed Babawo, a mother of six orphans, who she feeds from the proceeds of her beans cake business said ‘those of us who have orphans are always open to donations, and are always grateful when we receive any.’
Yobe state government is grateful
In an interview with YERWA EXPRESS NEWS, the executive secretary of Yobe State Emergency Management Agency (YOSEMA), Dr. Mohammed Goje said ‘our joy is that this partnership keys into the priorities of the executive governor of Yobe State, Mai Bala Buni.
‘When they came on board, we ask them to prioritize on what the government is doing and we identify the communities for them to do all their necessary validations. On livelihood, this intervention is very key, because their mandate is livelihood. Therefore our own is to identify the communities and ensure that the right persons benefited,’ Goje said.
Dr. Goje also noted that the state government is open to other agencies or donors for intervention but their programmes has to identify with the priorities of the government.
The Emir of Fika, who is represented by Alhaji Adamu Ba’aba Fika thanked the Shell for the intervention, urging the beneficiaries to judicially use the items given to them.
Shell is a multi-billion dollar oil and gas production company established in Nigeria during the colonial period. It aims to meet the world’s growing demand for energy in ways that are economically, environmentally and socially responsible. It is one of the leading energy companies in the world, with presence in almost all oil producing companies in the world. https://yenlive.com/news/index.php/news/2153-shell-feeds-thousands-of-idps-in-yobe
