THE Federal Government on Thursday lamented that despite its efforts and humanitarian aid, about 4.5 million Nigerians remain food insecure since the advent of Boko Haram attacks spilt over the borders of north-east into neighbouring countries in 2014.
The government also disclosed that arrangements have been concluded to commence voluntary repatriation of 4000 first batch of Nigerian refugees from Cameroon.
Honourable Federal Commissioner for National Commission for Refugees, Migrants and Internally Displaced Persons (NCFRMI), Umar Farouk, spoke on the occasion of the World Refugees Day held at ECOWAS Secretariat, Abuja.
World Refugee Day is observed every year, all over the world on the 20th of June in order to raise public awareness about refugees’ situations throughout the world.
Farouk said Nigeria, Cameroon, Niger and Chad have gotten drawn into a devastating regional conflict with the Lake Chad Basin region grappling with a complex humanitarian emergency.
She said: “Some 2.4 million people are uprooted, including over 2.1 million Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in north-eastern Nigeria, over 471,000 IDPs in Cameroon, Chad and Niger and over 228,000 refugees.
“Despite the efforts of governments and humanitarian aid, some 4.5 million people remain food insecure and depend on assistance,” she said.
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She further disclosed that the Commission in collaboration with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has commenced the process of issuing the Refugee Convention Travel Documents (CTDs to refugees.
According to her, a total of 178 refugees have been referred to the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) for biometric capturing, saying the Commission was in close contact with NIS and production is ongoing and that those already produced would soon be issued to the beneficiaries upon official unveiling.
She recalled that Nigeria, Cameroon and UNHCR had in 2017 signed a tripartite agreement to facilitate the return of about 97,000 refugees from Cameroon to Borno and Adamawa states.
She said: “Nigeria was tasked with facilitating the return of the refugees in safety and dignity, care and maintenance of the returnees as well as the provision of a durable solution to enable them to resettle in Nigeria.
“In the spirit of the agreement, the Technical Working Group (TWG) has concluded arrangements to commence voluntary repatriation of 4000 refugees, after President Muhammadu Buhari has graciously approved both funding and logistics towards the repatriations.
“In line with this, the TWG has made advanced plans towards the repatriation to Adamawa State, however, the Cameroon government requested to be given more time for planning to enable all stakeholders involved in this repatriation to achieve a better synergy,” she said.
Meanwhile, Vice-President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo, SAN, who was represented at the event by a former Special Adviser to the President on Social Investment Programme, Mrs Mayriam Uwais, said over 2 million people were displaced as a result insurgencies in the North East part of the country.
He said there was the need to collectively act together to address the root causes and challenges faced by the refugees and asylum seekers, saying the Government of President Muhammadu Buhari is committed to responsive and accountable delivery of services while ensuring effective security of lives o the refugees, asylum seekers and IPDs in her protection.
He added that effective, responsive and accountable security management could not be an afterthought but a core aspect of the global operations, which Nigeria must strive to improve.
Osinbajo assured all stakeholders especially the UN systems and organisations of Nigeria desire to #StepWithRefugees in persistent support and assistance towards the management of refugees and internally displaced persons globally, and to emphasise the need to pay attention to the deplorable conditions of IDPs.
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) representative in Nigeria, Mr Antonio Jose, said over $84 million was needed to deal with the humanitarian crisis in the Lake Chad Basin, saying the miseries of the refugees and IDPs were essentially the same.
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