BY NDAHI MARAMA, MAIDUGURI
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and King Salman Relief Foundation (KSRF) on Tuesday donated 7,972 of 25kg bags of rice and beans with condiments which were distributed to Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in Borno state.
Flagging off the ceremony at the Zonal Head Office of National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) in Maiduguri, the Deputy Ambassador of Saudi Arabia to Nigeria, Mr Ebraheem Alghamedi said, the gesture is to cover three states of Borno, Yobe and Zamfara Internally Displaced Persons.
He said the cordial relationship that exists between Saudi Arabia and the Federal Republic of Nigeria is a good omen, as the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KS) is interested in enhancing these relationships to offer aid, especially in Borno and other crisis-prone communities without any discrimination on the basis of religion or ethnicity.
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Since 2018, more than 600,000 people have been the beneficiaries of King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Centre, this is because of the donation by the Foundation of the Humanitarian food assistance that is worth Ten Million Dollars, in which, one hundred and forty thousand and sixty-eight food baskets have been distributed already in Borno and Yobe states.
Ambassador Alghamedi pointed out that, apart from these interventions, the Kingdom has carried out a number of voluntary medical campaigns in Oyo and Nassarawa states to combat blindness and its causes, in which, 8,000 patients suffering from cataract and glaucoma benefitted.
He noted that the Kingdom also donated medical equipment in kind, worth one million dollars, to combat Covid-19 in Nigeria.
“We are here to flag off the distribution of 3972 bags of 25kg rice, 3972 bags of 25kg beans and 3972 cartons of Maggi, vegetable oil among other condiments.
These items which were donated to IDPs in Borno by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia would be given to each households living in camps.
“The gesture is to cover three states of Borno, Yobe and Zamfara respectively.
“This cordial relationship that exists between Saudi Arabia and the Federal Republic of Nigeria is a good omen, as Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is interested in enhancing these relationships to offer aid, especially in Borno and other crisis-prone communities without any discrimination on the basis of religion or ethnicity”. He said.
The Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Hajiya Sadiya Umar Faruq appreciated KS for this humanitarian intervention to the victims of insurgency in Borno state.
Represented by Senior Special Assitant to President Buhari on Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) and Disaster Management, Mallam Musa Bugudu said, “the present intervention which is worth $1,147,310 is for Borno, Yobe and Zamfara states.
He emphasized that the items will be distributed directly to the affected people through the combined efforts of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) and the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) in each state.
Bugudu said each household is expected to have a 59.8 kilograms basket of food made up of rice, white iron beans, masa product, tomato (tasty tom), salt, Maggi and vegetable oil.
The North-East Zonal Coordinator of National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Mrs Lydia Wagami who represented her Director-General, AVM Muhammadu Mohammed and the Director-General Borno State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA), Dr Yabawa Kolo, all expressed their delight, and described the gesture as timely, as it would go along way in complimenting efforts of the government cushion the hardship among IDPs in the holy month of Ramadan.
The beneficiaries in their separate remarks thanked the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for the donation which they said, would better their lives during the Ramadan fasting, and urged other countries to emulate.
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