Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in parts of Borno State consume about 1,800 bags of 50 kilogrammes of rice daily, Governor Kashim Shettima said yesterday in Abuja.
He was delivering an address at the first annual Dialogue on Rebuilding Peace in Borno State, organised by an advocacy group, AOA Global, in collaboration with Borno State at the Transcorp Hilton Hotel.
Shettima highlighted what he called food emergency, following the influx of IDPs trapped by insurgents, before they were freed by the military.
He said: “As we speak, we are battling a crisis of feeding the mass of humanity in Borno. The military has rescued communities trapped, due to the presence of Boko Haram insurgents on certain routes. This has led to a mass exodus of IDPs from these communities to emergency camps.
“In Borno today, about 1,800 bags of 50 kilogrammes of rice, which constitute three trailers of 600 bags each, are required daily to cater for IDPs across the state. This does not include ingredients, such as tomatoes, vegetable oil, beans to balance carbohydrate, onions, salt and other elements. For our regular camps, 984 bags of rice are consumed daily, based on a Data Tracking Matrix of the International Organisation on Migration, working with the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) and State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA).
This figure of 984 978 bags is for the camps in Maiduguri, Jere, Dikwa, Bama and Damboa. For Maiduguri and Jere, 787 bags of rice are consumed daily by the 152,000 IDPs in 17 camps and two relief points at Madinatu and Muna garage, where food items are distributed to IDPs living outside camps in Maiduguri.
“For Dikwa, which has 75,000 displaced persons, 101 bags are required daily. Bama requires 50 bags daily for 32,000 displaced persons, while Damboa requires 40 bags daily. These are as per the Data Tracking Mtarix of the International Organisation on Migration.”
There are areas where interventions are made on bi-weekly basis. In Gwoza for instance, two trucks totalling 1,200 bags of rice are conveyed every two weeks, meaning 85 bags daily. In Banki, 1,200 bags in two trucks are conveyed every two weeks.
“At Ngala where we have 7,000 persons in camps and 60,000 living around communities with no source of food, a minimum of 140 bags of 50 kilogrammes of rice are consumed daily. In Monguno, which has 48,000 IDPs from both Monguno and Marte, 60 bags are required daily; in Baga and Kroskawa, 58 bags are required daily for 33,000 IDPs. In Sabon-Gari, 21,000 IDPs need 40 bags daily, while Nganzai has the least, which is 1,300 displaced persons. Besides population, consumption is also dependent on the ratio of women and children, who consume less than men.”
