UNHCR empowers 426 IDPs in Yobe

By Musa M. Buba

Damaturu

The United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR), in collaboration with the American University (AUN) has presented empowerment packages to 426 Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), refugee returnees and host community in 40 cooperative groups within Yobe state, in an effort to revive their means of livelihood.
Declaring the programme open, Head of UNHCR sub-office, Maiduguri, Cesar Tshilombo, said “based on our fundamental belief in UNHCR, instead of always giving fish as humanitarian organisation to the IDPs to eat at a time and still lack, we often invest in training them on how to catch fish by themselves.”
Cesar, who was represented by Gabriel Idoko of Yobe state UNHCR office, added that the empowerment provided would help the IDPs to be self-reliant with less dependence on humanitarian support.
In their separate goodwill messages, the Permanent Secretary of the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA), Musa Idi Jidawa and the Commissioner of Women Affairs and Social Development, Hajiya Hajara Lawan, called on the beneficiaries to make good use of
the facilities provided, urging them not to sell them but to build on their lives and be self-reliant.
Some of the beneficiaries, Hamsatu Maina and Auwal Mohammed, thanked UNHCR and the American University for coming to their aid and promised to work as a team and ensure that they mentor others.
Blueprint gathered that 21 groups benefited from groundnut oil processing machines, 7 groups were provided with local spaghetti producing equipment and materials, 6 groups in tailoring and fashion design and 3 groups in rice milling. The other 3 groups got groceries/petty trading and 1 group each with local perfume production, mat making, food vending and pastries.
There were 40 groups that benefited from the gesture across four local governments of Damaturu, Nguru, Gashua and Potiskum all in Yobe state.

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