By Stephen Ojo
The Shiroro Desk Officer and Coordinator of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) Shiroro Local Government, Yusuf Bala Kuta has said that 50 malnourished children in the camps are currently receiving treatment.
Kuta stated this while speaking with journalists at the IDPs camp in Kuta town in Shiroro Local Government Area of Niger State.
He said, ” inadequate food stuffs leading to hunger and malnutrition, education and health facilities are some of the challenges confronting the IDPs at the camp. I can tell you that 50 malnurished children are undergoing treatment due to lack of adequate foods for the breastfeeding women in the camp”.
While thanking the Nigerian Red Cross for its recent support to the camps in terms of food and other essentials, Kuta appealed to other public spirited individuals to assist in the same direction, adding that the situation in the camp is getting worse with the inflow of more people fleeing from bandits attacks in the villages.
The state commissioner for Humanitarian Affairs, Alhaji Baba Suleiman Yumu speaking on the IDPs situation in the state said that over 42,000 IDPs are currently in Niger state across the three most affected local government areas of Shiroro, Munya and Rafi while about 75 affected communities from the councils.
Yumu explained that governor Mohammed Umar Bago’s administration has been doing all its best in providing succor for the affected victims within available resource.
Also speaking, the Director General of Niger State Emergency Management Agency NSEMA Alhaji Abdullahi Baba Arah reiterated the commitment of the present administration in prioritizing the welfare and wellbeing of those in needs especially during emergencies.
According to the Public Relations Officer of the Agency, Hussaini Ibrahim who spoke for the Director General, ” recently relief materials including food items were given out for distribution to IDPs. The agency is always up to its tasks when the need arises which will be sustained in all its ramifications”.