Following the official launch of Project Zero Hunger in Nigeria, the National Commission for Refugees, Migrants and Internally Displaced Persons in Nigeria in collaboration with the Nigerian Army have distributed food packs to Persons of Concern in 2 locations of Lagos State.
The Federal Commissioner, Imaan Sulaiman Ibrahim distributed the Food Care Packs to some Persons of Concern at the South-west Zonal Office of the Commission while a simultaneous activity took place at the Surulere Constituency.
She said the initiative was predicated by the rising global food Insecurity.
Distributing the Food care packs, Suleiman-Ibrahim affirmed that the Initiative was in line with the Army’s Corporate Social Responsibility mandate.
According to her, the Project will adopt and promote an integrated and whole of society approach which allows everyone to complement the Federal Government’s efforts especially in the Feeding of POCs.
“The Project Zero Hunger, as a necessity, will help streamline and enhance the accessibility, distribution and availability of mainly food and non-food items to satisfy the immediate nutritional needs of all persons of concern using The Food Care Packs,” she explained.
The Commissioner said lasting and durable solutions are in tandem with the 2nd Goal of the United Nations Agenda for Sustainable Development and the African Union’s Agenda 2030 which seeks sustainable solutions to end hunger and poverty in all its forms.
” This goal aligns with the vision of the President Muhammadu Buhari led administration. Presently, Nigeria has been categorized among the countries threatened by the risk of famine, with most of our persons of concern (internally displaced persons, refugees, asylum seekers, stateless persons and returnees) being at high risk of hunger and malnutrition. The urgent need to achieve food security, have given high importance to The Project Zero Hunger initiative”.
“The Project Zero Hunger, as a necessity, will help streamline and enhance the accessibility, distribution and availability of mainly food and non-food items to satisfy the immediate nutritional needs of all persons of concern using The Food Care Packs.
“At least one person can feed one person of concern (Each one Feed One), thus addressing the immediate challenges around hunger and malnutrition for our POCs”.
“This will be allowing the commission to deploy more resources towards Durable and sustainable Solutions. The Project Zero Hunger will also create a forum for different stakeholders to collaborate and support the Commission in mobilizing additional resources to positively make a better impact in their lives while eliminating waste, reducing vulnerability, addressing issues of compromise and the duplication of efforts that was evident in the previous distribution of food and non-food items to persons of concern”.
Speaking to the Persons of Concern, the Federal Commissioner said “We should be able to build resilience so that people can rise and be able to do what they want to do. If you want to contribute big time to nation-building, contribute big time. Just take your time and grow, if you have any challenge, work around it”.
Imaan Sulaiman Ibrahim appreciated the efforts of President Muhammadu Buhari, the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development for being resolute to ensure PoCs live a dignified life.
While at the Surulere Constituency, the Federal Commissioner was represented by the South-west Zonal Coordinator, National Commission for Refugees Migrants and Internally Displaced Persons, Ola Erinfolami.
She said, “We are here on behalf of the Federal Commissioner, National Commission for Refugees, Migrants and Internally Displaced Persons, Hajiya Imaan Ibrahim-Suleiman, to do distribution of Christmas gifts to all our Persons of Concern and because we have the love of this Constituency because we have been working and collaborating with Honourable Femi Gbajabiamila for years, so we seem it fit to also bring some of the items here to give to our people on behalf of the Commission”.
“The Honourable Federal Commissioner has also been going round to do the food distribution in all the Six geopolitical zones across the country,” She added
Mrs Erinfolami added that the distribution will continue to go round all the Constituencies to all PoCs.
For his part, the Speaker, Nigeria’s House of Representatives whose Constituency is the beneficiary, said he was elated to be a partaker of the Project Zero Hunger initiative.
Represented by the Special Assistant to the Speaker on Humanitarian Affairs, Hamza Ibrahim Baba, Mr Gbajabiamila added that “There’s what we call a ‘Durable Solution Mechanism which we have already kick-started for people who have been displaced by either crisis, banditry crisis, Boko Haram crisis in different parts of the Country. We have started this durable solutions to assist them to be able to return in safety and dignity and those that cannot return to the places where they were displaced, we are looking at relocating them, empowering them, with tools, skills, vocational training to be able to continue their lives. Even here, we are coming back in January, we are doing some kind of empowerment, ICT empowerment for some of our youths in Lagos here, to empower them with some working tools and devices so that they can continue their normal lives”.
The food Care Packs contain food and household items in line with the “Each one Feed one” initiative.
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