Action Against Hunger, an international non-governmental organisation, has urged the Federal Government to pass the draft National Policy on Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) to engender effective coordination of emergency response activities.
Mr Yannick Pouchalan, the agency’s Country Director, made the call in Abuja on Wednesday in an interview with Newsmen
He said that the call became necessary so as to facilitate the efforts of all stakeholders to work together to provide life-saving assistance to the displaced persons.
He underscored the need to develop, approve and implement a multi-sectoral Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) policy that would integrate nutrition and WASH activities, support hygiene promotion and boost the access of IDPs to clean water.
Besides, Pouchalan said that it was important for Nigeria to domesticate the Kampala Convention which it had ratified, so as to promote sustainable solutions to internal displacement of persons, while protecting and providing humanitarian response to these IDPs.
“In order to continue working together to provide life-saving assistance, we urge the Federal Government to provide an enabling environment for vulnerable persons to access services with improved regulations on movements, while continuing to maintain security in the North- East.
“We also call on the government to pass the draft National Policy on IDPs and domesticate the Kampala Convention which Nigeria ratified, as this will lead to better response and effective coordination of response to the challenges facing the IDPs.”
The country director said that it was important to create funding opportunities via donors to boost efforts to sustain and scale up nutrition interventions.
Pouchalan also stressed the need to create an enabling regulatory environment for the importation of drugs and medical supplies for IDPs.
He said that the group’s humanitarian programmes were meeting the needs of displaced persons, host communities and returnees with health and nutrition programmes as well as clean water and sanitation to reduce the incidence of malnutrition and disease.
He said that the organisation was also providing emergency food assistance in kind and cash, depending on market functionality to help displaced persons to purchase food or meet other urgent needs.
He said that it also injecting funds into the local economy and facilitating longer-term food security through the process.
Pouchalan said in Maiduguri, for instance, a complementary feeding “Porridge Mums” activity was initiated and it established 80 mother groups who met daily to consume some nutritional porridge and discuss Infant Young Child Feeding (IYCF) practices.
“We also provide Community-Based Management of Acute Malnutrition (CMAM) and IYCF capacity-building support and training to health workers and community volunteers.”
He said that in 2016, the group, through the execution of its humanitarian and development programme, had reached no fewer than 1.4 million people in Jigawa, Yobe and Borno States.
“We are contributing to children growing up healthy and strong with the ability to fulfil their potential with the implementation of the `Working to Improve Nutrition in Northern Nigeria (WINNN)’ programme,’’ he said.
Pouchalan said that the programme involved preventing and treating malnutrition among mothers and children by scaling up nutrition services.
He said that the programme was also raising public awareness and improving policy and funding in the country for programmes and proven solutions to prevent under-nutrition.
Pouchalan said that the organisation, under its Child Development Grant Programme (CDGP) in Jigawa, was providing pregnant women and women with children under two with cash transfers for supplemental nutrition support, along with nutritional education and counselling.
Action Against Hunger, which has been operating in Nigeria since 2010, is a leading humanitarian organisation in the fight against hunger in the north-eastern part of Nigeria.
The agency has been working to prevent and treat severe malnutrition and achieve nutrition security via an integrated, holistic, multi-sectoral approach.
Since 2014, Action Against Hunger has been responding to the humanitarian crisis, implementing the Food, Security and Livelihoods (FSL) scheme as well as nutrition, health, WASH and shelter interventions in Yobe and Borno states.
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