UNFPA Budgets $10m For Humanitarian Needs In Nigeria

The United Nations Popu
lation Fund (UNFPA) has said it has budgeted 10 million dollars (about N2 billion) to provide humanitarian needs in the North East region of Nigeria.
The Executive Director of UNFPA, Prof. Babatunde Osotimehin, disclosed this in Abuja on Sunday when he featured at a news forum.
Osotimehin said that more resources are being raised by the fund to support Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in parts of the country.
While commending government efforts in fighting insurgency and the recovery of territories so far, he pledged that UNFPA would continue to assist in rehabilitating the displaced persons.
The UNFPA boss, however, cautioned against the construction of permanent camps for IDPs in the country.
“Our experience shows that when camps are built they tend to persist and the life span of an average camp is seventeen years, this is something we don’t want to encourage.
“Nigerians have never lived in camps when disasters happen, they go to their relatives, and extended families so the social structure looks after them,” he explained.
Osotimehin also urged President Muhammadu Buhari to include culture disaster preparedness in his governance.
He said the insurgency in the North East was unfortunate hence the need for government to be at alert and prepare for future occurrences as well as learn more on disaster management.
According to him, the UNFPA has consistently provided support services in countries affected by violence, crises, insurgency, natural disasters and communal clashes all over the world.
He said that the fund is distributing “dignity kits” and “reproductive health kits” on regular basis in over 150 countries where UNFPA is represented including Nigeria.
“The dignity kits content are under wears, sanitary wears, soap, clothes, buckets, teeth and hair brushes, toothpaste, among others, which provide the basic essentials that enable women and girls maintain their dignity,” he said.
Osotimehin also explained that the reproductive health kits were equipped with items for diagnoses, examination, treatment, deliveries and caesarian sections which are given to health workers on the field to treat sick persons and pregnant women.