From Scholastica Hir, Makurdi
The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has donated assorted health commodities to the Benue state government as part of their contributions to impact the lives of survivors of the Yelwata massacre.
The Chief Field Office UNICEF Kaduna, Gerida Birukila, who made the donation on Friday at the temporary IDP camp in Makurdi the state capital, said the commodities, cholera kits and medicines would combat diseases at the camp.
She noted that in such kind of environment it was important to take care of water and sanitation and also protect them from diseases like cholera, among others.
“We also saw that there are a lot of new mothers around with their babies, so we are also providing health care, immunization and treatment.
“We are working closely with other partners like the Red Cross, IOM and with the government as well to ensure that we ease the suffering of the IDPs. For us we are here to stay. We have been in the state before and now after the crisis so we would ensure that we work with the government and with other partners in the camp to ensure that these items are used for the displaced people.”
Also speaking, the Health Specialist UNICEF, Dr Ifeyinwa Anyanyo, said UNICEF is supporting in 10 out of the 15 registered IDP camps in the state.
Anyanyo, who described the donation as a fraction of what UNICEF had already been doing,
also disclosed that beyond the short-term interventions, UNICEF had plans for the mid-term and long-term recovery efforts as well as their re-integration into their ancestral homes.
She described the crisis as unfortunate, assuring that UNICEF and the partners were committed to working together with the state agencies, the CSOs and local NGOs to mitigate the impact of the crisis.