Yemi Osinbajo | We’ll recover, reconstruct, rehabilitate North-East

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo has restated the Federal Government’s commitment toward sustainable reconstruction, rehabilitation and recovery of the North-East region.

Osinbajo spoke at the World Humanitarian Day with the theme ” One Humanity” organised by National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) at International Conference Centre, Abuja on Friday.

He was represented by Dr. Femi Oke-Osanyintolu, Special Adviser to the Vice President on Monitoring and Evaluation of IDPs programmes.

The vice president said the Federal Government had put in place several measures to reduce the adverse effects of the crisis by producing a guild for the restoration of the region.

“Federal Government has further put in place several measures aimed at reducing the adverse effects of the crisis in the North-East through safe schools initiative, the Presidential Initiative for North- East and Victims Support Fund.

“All these are aimed at supporting victims of Boko Haram insurgency and ensuring their speedy recovery from the crisis.”

Osinbajo said that the National Assembly was working toward setting up a North-East Commission which was expected to pull resources from government and other sources for sustainable recovery.

He said Nigeria was consulting with governments of Cameroon, Chad and Niger on the speedy recovery of the area with assistant from international organisation.

In his remarks, the NEMA Director-General, Muhammadu Sidi, said the theme “One Humanity” was aimed at inspiring people around the world to demand greater global commitment and support to humanity.

Sidi said the event was part of the ongoing dialogue initiated during the World Humanitarian Summit in Istanbul, Turkey, in May 2016 which emphasised on awareness creation.

He said the theme was appropriate and relevant considering the humanitarian challenges encountered in the North-East, especially Adamawa, Borno and Yobe.

The director-general said the theme brought to fore the compelling need to mobilise resources, exhibition of humanitarian care and demonstration of sympathy.

According to him, this will relieve victims of crisis of their psycho-social trauma and increase their resilience to post-conflict life situation.

“This also calls for working together in providing support to the teaming IDPs in the North-East and other crisis prone areas in Nigeria.”

Sidi said the huge number of IDPs had overstretched camp facilities and the resilience of the host families, which calls for more assistant from local and international humanitarian actors. He said that humanitarian dashboard in the North was gradually shifting from emergency relief intervention to sustainable rehabilitation, reconstruction and recovery of the people.

“As humanitarian actors, we must renew our commitment to the speedy restoration of normalcy in the devastated communities of the North-East.”