By Alfred Ifemosu
The National Commission for Refugees Migrants and Internally Displaced Persons (NCFRMI) has revealed that no fewer than over 6.1 million Nigerians were displaced by insecurity and natural disasters.
The NCFRMI Federal Commissioner, Alhaji Tijjani Aliyu, made this disclosure during a visit to Gov. Dikko Radda of Katsina State on Friday, 8 March, 2024 in Katsina.
According to Aliyu, as of 2022, the commission had about 3 million displaced persons, “but with floods and other natural disasters, we now have an additional 100 per cent of such displaced people.”
“Today, I can authoritatively say that we have not less than 6.1 million Nigerians displaced out of their homes.
“What do we do if all of them cannot go back, how do we fend them? Can the government continue to feed them, providing them succour?
“Absolutely not possible, we have to find a way to teach these individuals trades, give them skills, so that at the end of the day, they can be on their own,” he said.
Aliyu, who disclosed the commission’s intention to construct three well-furnished skills acquisition centres across the Northeast, from the 2024/2025 budget, added that the essence of the visit was to distribute food items to about 700 displaced people in the state.
“Before today, the commission has been putting its efforts to ensure that these people were not left in an undignified way. Their children have received educational training funds from us.
“About 120 of them were trained, and also about 70 of their mothers were given some small starter packs to improve their living standard,” he said.
Aliyu said, in addition to that, the commission identified the problem of water in the IDPs camp but immediately intervened by providing a solar-powered borehole.
“We have also built settlement cities in IDPs camp located areas, for those who may not want to go back to their ancestral homes, and Katsina is one of the beneficiaries,” he said.
The NCFRMI boss said the commission also intended to enrol the IDPs in a health insurance scheme to take care of their health challenges.