The federal government has said the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown, ongoing activities of armed bandits and flooding experienced across the North-west had led to the displacement of over 247,000 persons across Zamfara, Katsina, Sokoto, Kaduna, Niger and Kebbi states.
It also said the economic and agricultural activities in Zamfara state were affected thereby creating socio and economic vulnerabilities.
The Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Hajiya Sadiya Umar Faruq stated this at a Town Hall meeting with all the relevant stakeholders in Zamfara state during her two day official working visit to the state.
She said the food insecurity, a derivative of man-made and natural disasters being experienced in the Northwest, is also of particular concern to the federal government, while she reiterated the federal government’s commitment through her ministry, to supporting the state government in addressing the challenges of economic vulnerability in Zamfara state.
The ministry will continue its partnership with the state government to implement humanitarian, social inclusion and protection measures which include, the N-Power programme which has enlisted and deployed a total of 500,000 N-Power volunteers, meeting the programmes initial goal.
She said under the National Home-Grown School Feeding Programme (NHGSFP) being run in 35 states of the federation and the FCT with over 9 million children being fed as part of wider efforts by the federal government to address hunger and malnutrition in Nigeria.
