EU to tackle rural poverty, erosion in 6 states

Worried by ravaging effects of poverty and environmental degradation, the European Union (EU) has earmarked six pilot states in Nigeria for intervention.

The beneficiary states include; Akwa Ibom, Adamawa, Kwara, Imo, Delta and Lagos, where some team of assessors drawn from a coalition of Non Governmental Organizations (NGOs) are working to establish disaster-prone areas in the affected communities.

The President of the Network Advancement Programme for Poverty and Disaster Risks Reduction (NAPPDRR), Al mustapher Edoho, one of the coordinating officials for the project, said 50 countries including Nigeria have been listed in the scheme.

Speaking in an interview in Uyo, the Akwa Ibom state capital, on Monday, Edoho listed some of the benefitting to include Ntak Inyang and Abekpi in Esit Eket Local Government Area of Akwa Ibom; Mubi in Adamawa state; Oguta and Nekede in Imo state; Orhie Irri and Aradhe in Delta and Ilorin in Kwara.

He said the programme aimed at complementing the States’ Development Goals (SDGs) by alleviating rural poverty through provison of essential lifeline for the disaster-prone communities.

“It’s a global social development initiative and the project helps United Nations International Strattegy on Disaster Reduction (UNISDR) to review the progress towards the implemenation of the Sendai, Japan’s framework on disaster reduction globally, as well as climate change”, he explained.

Edoho said, his NAPPDRR was selected as one of the participating organisations “after a rigorous understudy of the impacts of disaster risks like flooding, erosion and environmental pollution in two communities in Akwa Ibom”.

He said the findings of the team of investigators and enumerators sent to the affected areas would be heavily deliberated upon at a comprehensive forum of all stakeholders before the commencement of implemetation.

“We will interface in the course of the investigation with multi-stakeholders like civil society organisations, youths and children, persons with disabilities, women, the professionals and elderly persons and local government’s officials.

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