The Department for International Development (DFID) programme officer in Nigeria, Ijeoma Agwu, has said the organisation is investing £300 million on humanitarian response to save lives and minimise suffering in the North-east of the country, covering a period of five years.
The DFID programme officer stated this at the final project review and close out meeting of the Integrated Basic Nutrition Response to Humanitarian Crises in Borno and Yobe states held at Maidugu Hotel in Gombe on Saturday.
The close out meeting was also for the multi sectoral pilot Integrated Nutrition Programming plus (INP+) funded by the Action Against Hunger, World Food Programme and UNICEF.
Ijeoma Agwu said the UK considered Nigeria a key partner and that the UK remained one of the leading international donors to the humanitarian response in North-east Nigeria, delivering urgent assistance to save lives and minimise suffering.
According to her, “DFID is currently investing £300 million over five years, reaching over one million people in 2018 alone with life-saving food assistance, 532,000 with clean water and 196,000 with health care”.
She added that the UK was also supporting the government of Nigeria to address the root causes of the conflict and rebuild communities in the longer term.
The INP+ Consortium Coordinator, Mr. Nwogu Kelechukwu, in an interview said, even with several interventions and supports, Nigeria still remained a very serious menace because nutrition issues had not been taken as a priority by the political class.
He said, “more awareness, more advocacy by the media, technical experts and all stakeholders should join hands to advocate so that nutrition will be made a priority both in government policies and budgets so that it will become a priority like other health issues”.
