By Chesa Chesa
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has laid the foundation for the official launch of the Resettlement Scheme for Persons Impacted by Conflict (RSPIC), to address the humanitarian crisis caused by internal displacements across Nigeria.
The project marks a shift in the government’s approach to internal displacement and conflict resolution and a commitment of President Tinubu to not just give temporary relief, but long-term rehabilitation and reintegration to affected communities.
At the groundbreaking ceremony of the pilot phase of the project in Tudun Biri, Kaduna State, Tinubu, who was represented by Vice-President Kashim Shettima said, “there couldn’t have been a better place for the take-off of this intervention than this diverse state.”
According to the President, “Kaduna State has offered us a launchpad to venture into the communities dislodged by conflict. For so long, we have been held hostage by the fear of ourselves and allowed preventable incidents to escalate into transgenerational disputes. Today, we gather to say, ‘Enough is enough’”.
Shettima had earlier in February inaugurated a steering committee to coordinate the implementation of the initiative in fulfillment of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s promise to improve the lives of all Nigerians.
The committee chaired by Minister of Housing and Urban Development, Arc Ahmed Musa Dangiwa, also has representatives of governors of the benefiting states as members.
Other members of the committee include the Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Sen. Abubakar Kyari; representatives of the Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Director General of the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP), BUA Group, Dangote Group and the Director General of NEMA, among others.
The project will initially focus on seven states that have been disproportionately affected by farmers-herders conflicts. They are Sokoto, Kebbi, Benue, Katsina, Zamfara, Niger, and Kaduna State.
