Louis Ibah
The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (COHA) says it would spend about $70 million in various humanitarian projects in the north eastern states of Borno, Adamawa and Yobe.
Head of Communications for the OCHA, Ms. Samantha Newport, who disclosed this, in Lagos, while briefing journalists on the UN’s humanitarian efforts in the North East of Nigeria, described the humanitarian crisis in the affected states as one of the worst in contemporary world.
Newport said the $70 million was contributed from 17 foreign countries and she demanded that Nigerians, especially corporate organisations, pull resources together to assist the UN Mission in resolve the humanitarian crisis in the region.
“More than seven million people are affected in the three worst affected states of Borno, Adamawa and Yobe and 1.8 million people are displaced internally,” said Newport.
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“The NHF is managed by COHA under the leadership of the UN Humanitarian Coordinator in Nigeria, Mr Edward Kallon. The NHF has raised $70 million from 17 donor countries,” she added.
She said with other global crises competing for scarce resources, the Nigeria Humanitarian Fund (NHF) – a funding mechanism, was set up in May 2017.
She said the NHF had continued to assist internally displaced people in crowded camps and host communities in the north east of Nigeria.
Newport said the NHF has also provided funding to help contain the cholera outbreak in the northeast which was considered to be the worst in the past 10 years.
She said the UN currently has 3,000 workers and volunteers carrying out these services in the region, adding that no fewer than 2,500 of them were Nigerians.
Newport said the UN, in collaboration with the private sector in Nigeria, had inaugurated its first NHF Private Sector Initiative (NHF-PSI) to provide more funds for humanitarian assistance in the North East of Nigeria.
She therefore solicited contributions from Nigerian corporate establishments towards the UN effort in eradicating poverty and hunger in the North East of Nigeria.