FG partners Borno on refugees’ repatriation

The Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction, Prof. Nantawe Yilwatda, has disclosed that the Federal Government has partnered with the Borno State Government to ensure the dignified repatriation of people displaced by Boko Haram insurgency.

Yilwatda made this known during his visit to Governor Babagana Zulum at Government House, Maiduguri, on Wednesday.

He noted that the Federal Government, in collaboration with the National Commission for Refugees, Migrants and Internally Displaced Persons and the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, is discussing ways to repatriate refugees based on standard international law, ensuring their safe return.

According to Yilwatda, Borno was his first point of call since his appointment as minister for an ‘On-The-Spot Assessment’.

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He added that Borno would be mainstreamed in developing the Humanitarian Master Plan for Nigeria and Nigerians, which would be unveiled in January 2025.

The minister commiserated with the government and people of the state over the humanitarian crisis posed by insurgents and the recent flood disaster.

He commended Governor Zulum and the people of the state for their resilience and pledged that his ministry, with support from President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, would offer needed support for all victims of man-made and natural disasters.

Yilwatda has also flagged off the beans harvest of ‘The Renewed Hope Agric Empowerment Project for Internally Displaced Persons’ and other victims of flood disaster in Sabon Gari Community, Baale Galtimari Ward, Jere Local Government Area.

He also unveiled the distribution of relief items donated by the NCFRMI in collaboration with the federal government to hundreds of displaced heads of households in Amarwa community, Konduga Local Government Area, and Madinatu camp, Jere Local Government Area.

The minister also visited the Federal Government’s 150 hectares of beans farms allocated to resilient people of Modu Kawuri communities and unveiled the beans harvest under the RHAEPIDPs for hundreds of beneficiaries.

He announced a donation of N20,000 to each farmer and enjoined them to support the present administration, which he said would provide more agricultural interventions for peasant farmers in the next cropping season.

Responding, Governor Zulum described the minister’s visit as a ‘Home Coming’, having spent his early years in Borno.

He congratulated Yilwatda on his appointment and lamented the challenges of managing IDPs and repentant Boko Haram members in camps.

The Federal Commissioner of NCFRMI, Tijjani Ahmed, conducted the minister round communities of Amarwa and Madinatu camps, where Yilwatda distributed food and non-food items to hundreds of displaced heads of households.

Ahmed said the commission had constructed hundreds of housing estates and handed them over to people of Amarwa who were displaced by insurgents.

Yilwatda informed the IDPs that President Tinubu, through his ministry, would continue to provide succour and alleviate their economic hardships in no distant time.

NIGERIAN TRIBUNE