Not fewer than 9000 flood victims in Yobe State are to benefit from intervention to cushion the harsh effects of the disaster through the Special National Economic Livelihood Emergency Intervention (SNELEI) implemented by the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA).
The distribution exercise of the items was flagged off by the State Governor, Mai Mala Buni, at the event centre, Government House, Damaturu.
Mai Mala Buni said that the SNELEI intervention is aimed at supporting the long-term recovery of Nigeria from the 2022 flood disaster and that the drive for the sustainable socio-economic recovery of the country from the current challenges of fuel subsidy removal and high rate of inflation is timely.
Agricultural and household items were distributed to the flood victims noting that the SNELEI is a relief package containing food items, and livelihood support materials, including improved seeds and stools, which would go a long way in closing the gaps created by subsidy removal, thereby boosting the income of households affected by the 2022 flood disaster.
The Governor commended the efforts of the Federal Government through NEMA for coming up with the programme in order to bring succour to the victims of the 2022 flood disaster in Yobe State.
According to him, “The Phase 1 SNELEI intervention, which I am about to flag off today, targets over 9000 beneficiaries out of the 24,640 registered victims.”
He explained, “The beneficiaries who cut across all the 17 Local Government Areas were carefully identified by Yobe State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) that would benefit from this package”.
Mai Mala Buni called on all beneficiaries to appreciate and reciprocate the kind gesture by putting the items to proper use and avoiding reselling them.
Earlier in his brief remarks, the Director General of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Ahmed Mustapha Habib, said that the federal government approved the intervention to assist vulnerable persons across the country and those affected by the flood to support their quick return to normalcy.
The DG, who was represented by a Senior Official from the Agency, Hajiya Bintu Awana Aliyu, stated that a total of 66,884 households were verified and targeted to benefit from the special intervention across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
He advised the Yobe state beneficiaries to make proper use of the items given in order to improve their socio-economic conditions.
Some of the beneficiaries commended the gesture of the Federal government as well as the Yobe State Government, saying that the items will go a long way to support them mitigate against what they lost in the disaster.
They also expressed optimism that they would be able to pick up life again, having lost their sources of livelihood during the disaster.
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