FG provides additional food and relief materials to IDPs

Alhaji Mohammad Sani-Sidi

To allay concerns over the large number of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in North East, Director General National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) Muhammad Sani Sidi said the Federal Government has made available adequate food items and other relief materials to last them for a long period of time.

Addressing a stakeholders meeting in Abuja on the humanitarian situation in North east, he assured the unwavering commitment of the government to support the displaced persons. He said the meeting was called to harmonize all humanitarian activities in the areas affected by the security challenge to ensure compliance with international standards and the Nigerian national development plans.

The Director General of NEMA said in addition to the response so far, a high power Federal Government delegation would soon visit the various camps to critically assess conditions of the displaced persons and provide further supports to them. He said the displaced persons were presently living in various camps with about 760 unaccompanied children. NEMA staff deployed to support the displaced persons, according to him are working together with officials of the various state governments in the management of the IDPs camps.

He disclosed that some of the displaced persons that fled into the neighbouring Republic of Cameroon have been evacuated to a camp in Yola. He identified Gombe as the reception point for more of the Nigerians to be evacuated from abroad, from where arrangements would be made to transport them to their own various home states .

In attendance at the meeting were the Country Representative of the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) Ms Angele Dikongue-Atangana, representatives of the International Organization for Migration (IOM), UN-OCHA, Institute for Peace and Conflict Resolution, and the Nigerian Red Cross among others.

Manzo Ezekiel Press Officer 10 Nov 2014

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