According to Mohammed Goje, the Executive Secretary of the Yobe State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA), internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Yobe State are still struggling with limited access to means of survival despite improvements in security.
Goje acknowledged the need for humanitarian aid in a statement on Wednesday on Channels Television’s The Morning Brief, adding that the state’s strategy had changed from “temporary camps” to more “durable and realistic” options.
The situation in Yobe State is completely different. He claimed that we have already found a more viable and realistic alternative to IDPs in camps.
Read more about EU funding of €1.5 million to help victims of Yelewata and other internally displaced people in Benue.
Most IDPs in the state have been resettled, he claimed, aside from those who came from Mandunari , a town still recovering.
He explained that the government was rehabilitating important infrastructure in Mandunari, including housing, healthcare, education, water, and security facilities, to enable residents’ safe and sustainable return.
Goje acknowledged that despite improving security across the state, significant challenges still existed, particularly as a result of funding constraints and declining international support.
The government is burdened more by the return of IDPs because of the funding constraints (which we do not partake in) and other development challenges, despite the fact that there have been significant improvements.
“And when I say the government, I mean in terms of resettlement, providing for them, and returning them to their traditional threats and businesses. The government is facing a lot of difficulties, he said.
He noted that Yobe’s displacement issues were particularly complicated because many of the affected people were “required by customized reintegration plans and livelihood support” because many of them were rural and nomadic “horse communities.”
Goje claimed that the government was employing a three-step approach to IDP resettlement, each supported by a specific support package, to address these issues.
These include improvements to basic services, housing for returningees, and support for host communities.
He also disclosed that a comprehensive state-level IDP policy has been created with an emphasis on closing sectoral gaps in education, water, health, and water.
Source: Channels TV
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