By: Gbenga Akingbule
African Development Bank (AfDB) on Thursday provided $1 million in funding to the World Food Programme (WFP) to assist those affected by the floods in Borno State last September.
Gatekeepers News reports that the AfDB says the financial aid was from its Special Relief Fund to support emergency food response for flood-affected communities in Northeastern Nigeria.
The funding, according to the AfDB, is earmarked to support 120,000 households who were victims of the flood disaster.
This was made known during the distribution of food and cash transfers to 1458 selected beneficiary boroughs together by the WFP and Borno State government officials held at the Mechanical Workshop in Maiduguri, the state capital.
The Country Director of WFP in Nigeria, David Stevenson, commended the AfDB for the support and said the flood victims are already being assisted with food and cash transfers to aid their recovery.
Stevenson revealed that the WFP had since last September engaged in supporting the flood victims with their immediate needs, which include serving them hot meals to address the issue of hunger.
“Our responsibility at the WFP is to move fast. Within 24 hours, we were getting hot meals to the needy people in Maiduguri, and we scaled that up to 70,000 people within 48 hours. That was the immediate response to the floods
“But as quick as we did that, we started looking at solutions, so we worked very closely with the government of Borno State on how to recover and help people restore their livelihoods due to the floods,” Stevenson said
The WFP Country Director who described the donation of $1M by the AfDB as a “really important contribution”, added that “we’re not just saving lives, we’re working to change lives to help with humanitarian food systems solutions.”
Abdul Kamara, AfDB Director General in Nigeria, said at the occasion that the AfDB contribution is just a start, assuring that the organisation is set to do more for Borno flood victims.
“$1M is very small, but coming through the system that is already set up, deep-fill base and also has structures that can quickly reach people like the WFP has, I think that is the basis for this partnership we’re developing with WFP. This is just a start. We’re going to go beyond that,” Karama said.
Judit Obaseki WFP North East Identity Management Officer under the programme Unit says “So far 50,000 households in six locations have been reached ” Adding that’ ” multipurpose cash transfer of N100,000 and 25kg of fortified Rice and 10kg fortified Beans were given to beneficiaries.”
The beneficiaries were full of gratitude to the AfDB and WFP for coming to their after losing their valuables to flooding.
“The food and cash assistance I got will help me and my family to stay out of hunger and start a petty business,” 45-year-old Hauwa Ibrahim, a widow and mother, and six children said.
