Government of Japan is supporting
48,000 persons affected by Boko Haram crisis in North East Nigeria with US$2
million life-changing intervention.
The assistance is routed through the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP).
A statement on Tuesday by the WFP, said: “The United Nations World Food
Programme (WFP) has welcomed a contribution of US$2 million from the Government
of Japan that will provide life-changing support to people and communities
affected by insecurity in northeastern Nigeria.”
The statement said: “As part of WFP’s efforts to build stability across
communities in northeast Nigeria, Japan’s contribution will support more than
48,000 women and men to rebuild their livelihoods. WFP will provide food
purchased with these funds to people growing crops, raising livestock and
rehabilitating assets that may have been damaged during conflict in the
region.”
The statement quoted Shigeru Umetsu, Chargé d’affaires ad interim of Japan to
Nigeria, as saying: “The government of Japan is committed to supporting
Nigerian and international efforts to ensure that millions of people in need of
food in northeast Nigeria do not go hungry,” adding that: “It’s expected that
this funding will alleviate the suffering of people in the affected
states.”
The statement further stated that Japan’s support for livelihoods complements
WFP’s lifesaving efforts in Nigeria where some 700,000 people are provided cash
or food assistance every month, and over 250,000 women and children receive
supplementary nutritional support.
The statement quoted Myrta Kaulard, WFP Representative in Nigeria, as saying
that: “This funding from the Government of Japan is most welcome at this time,”
noting that: “In partnership with Japan, WFP can maintain its focus on
protecting people and making them self-reliant again because ultimately, we
want to stop these people from becoming dependent on food assistance.”
The statement said: “WFP hopes that other donors will follow suit to support
changing the lives of thousands of crisis-affected people, thus bringing back
stability to northeast Nigeria. In view of the forth-coming June-July planting
season, it is vital that adequate funding for livelihood programmes is
received.
“Livelihood assistance have been shown to bring long-term benefits to
development and peace initiatives in conflict-affected regions.”
