From Timothy Olanrewaju, Maiduguri
The Under Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator (USG/ERC), Martin Griffiths, has described the impact of over a decade of Boko Haram violence on the Northeast people as heartbreaking.
Griffiths who interacted with displaced victims of insurgency at Damasak, a restive town along Nigeria’s border with Niger Republic in the northern part of Borno during his tour of the area, said he saw pains as he listened to their concerns about their future.
“It’s heartbreaking to see the deep impact of the violence and repeated displacement for so many,” a statement yesterday (Friday) by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in the country quoted Griffiths as saying. The statement said the UN official heard from women and families displaced by the violence express their hope to return home but unable to plan for future due to continuous attacks on communities by Boko Haram/ISWAP.
“Yet the people I met demonstrated amazing courage in the face of vicious violence, killings, kidnappings, repeated displacement and sometimes bare survival,” Griffiths said. He said that the conflict in the Lake Chad basin has taken a heavy toll on communities across border areas of Nigeria, Cameroon, Chad and Niger, putting more than 10 million people at risk and in need of humanitarian assistance
The UN humanitarian chief visited Bama, Borno central town and once second largest town but ruined by Boko Haram incessant attacks. In 2021, the humanitarian community delivered aid to 5 million people in the area according to the UN-OCHA. It added that $1 billion US dollars (about N414.7 trillion) would be needed for implementation this year the Nigeria Humanitarian Response Plan.
