By Hassan Zaggi
The Minister of HumanitarianAffairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Sadiya Umar Farouq, hasdisclosed that 330,000 Nigerian refugees arecurrently residing in Chad, Cameroun and Niger Republic.
This is a result of theprotracted insurgency and armed banditry in the north east and north west,communal and the farmers/herdsmen clashes in the Middle Belt and the Southernregion, riverine floods, drought, as well as fires and industrial accidents,among other things.
The Minister made thedisclosure when she was hosted in a Chatham House Webinar to discuss Nigeria’shumanitarian challenges and worsening food crises in Nigeria, yesterday.
The breakdown of the 330,000Nigerian refugees in neighbouring countries, according to theMinister, include 16,634 in Chad, 118,409 in Cameroon,while Niger Republic has 186,957.
It would be recalled that theWorld Food Programme (WFP) estimated that 3.4 million people are currentlyfacing acute hunger in Borno, Yobe and Adamawa states, and that another 4.3million are entirely dependent on food assistance from the government ormultilateral organisations across the country.
Sadiya Umar Farouq, however,disclosed that her ministry has launched two key frameworks aimed at boostinghumanitarian actions and making them more practicable and impactful.
According to her: “The firstis the Humanitarian Development Peace Nexus Framework, which is derived fromthe UN Triple Nexus principles that believes development causes peace and thathumanitarian actions can bring about development.
“Second is the LocalizationFramework, an initiative adopted after the commitment of stakeholders at the2016 World Humanitarian Summit to reenergize the concept of localization ofaid.
“The concept seeks to makethe humanitariansystem more effective and relevant by ensuring that humanitarian preparednessand response capacity is domiciled with those nearest to the crisis-affectedpopulations as they are best placed to respond quickly and appropriately”.
The Minster, however, saidthat her Ministry has adopted some approaches aimed at mitigating thesufferings caused by humanitarian situations leading to food crises in thecountry.
The Minister said: “The foodsecurity challenges in the Northeast are peculiar due to the fluid and volatilesituation in the region.
“Nevertheless, the Ministryhas been working effectively with both humanitarian stakeholders and theMilitary to facilitate humanitarian access and promote accountability in thehumanitarian space within the Civil-Security Framework and coordinationplatform.
“The recently approvedNational IDP Policy also provides leadership and guidance framework towardsfood security for the North-East region, as well as promotes minimum standardsand thresholds to tackle ongoing displacement until a durable solution isestablished for the IDPs”.
Responding to a question onthe Q&A segment of the meeting, Sadiya Umar Farouq disclosed that herministry has put together some programs with the aim of addressing food crisesand other humanitarian issues faced by People of Concern in Nigeria.
“The Federal Government,through the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) provides rationed fooditems to IDPs in the Northeast, especially in Borno State.
“In addition, Stategovernments and other MDAs also channel food through the Ministry or directlyto IDPs.
“For example, the NationalEmergency Management Agency (NEMA) is currently distributing seedlings, farminginputs and insurance packages to farmers who were affected by the 2020 floods.
“The objective is not toreplace lost goods and farm produce, but to enhance better quality yields andbuild resilience among vulnerable farmers and adopt a more sustainable approachto ending food scarcity,” the Minister said.
While commending what shedescribed as the robust support and partnership her Ministry received fromdonor agencies and development partners, the Minister, however, appealed forincreased partnership in key programs, policies, and structures to address theprevailing humanitarian challenges of Nigeria through collective planning and agendashaping in a coordinated and sustained manner for better impact.
The Minister further calledfor increased cooperation in the Nigerian humanitarian space.
According to Sadiya Farouq:“It is my fervent hope that an effective technical, operational and financialcooperation and support from the UN will significantly contribute towards theeffective realization of the Ministry’s twin objectives of achieving effectivecoordination and impactful implementation of its programmes in a sustainablemanner.”
