Laraba MUREY
The federal government of Nigeria has joined forces with the United Nations, UN, to combat poverty and address humanitarian crises across the nation.
The meeting stemmed from the 78th United Nations General Assembly, UNGA, held in September, where President Bola Ahmed Tinubu outlined Nigeria’s top priorities.
These priorities includes ending poverty, ensuring job security for Nigerians, and tackling food insecurity and hunger, aligning with the Sustainable Development Goals, SDGs.
Speaking after the meeting, on Wednesday in Abuja, Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Dr Betta Edu, and the UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Nigeria, Matthias Schmale, said they worked towards establishing a collaborative plan between the UN and the Nigerian government.
Edu said, “This plan focuses on priority areas for UN intervention and lays out the technical steps for implementation. It also involves the creation of steering committees comprising UN agency heads, various ministries, and other relevant bodies to ensure coordinated implementation.^
According to her, the implementation of these collaborative initiatives is already underway, with activities in the field addressing urgent needs. For instance, UNICEF has initiated a transit learning area for out-of-school children affected by banditry in Niger State.
“However, this joint effort aims to expand and intensify interventions across the country, focusing not only on the Northeast but also on other regions, including the heavily impacted North Central region, particularly Benue.”
Also speaking, Schmale acknowledged the long standing engagement of the UN in Nigeria’s humanitarian work, especially in the Northeast.
The UN Resident Coordinator explained that they are not starting from scratch but they instead focusing on adapting their ongoing efforts to meet the country’s evolving needs. This adaptation reflects the commitment of the UN to support Nigeria’s pursuit of President Tinubu’s vision for the nation.
“The main message is we’re not starting at zero. We’re now in a phase where we are needing to make sure that the work we do is really fully aligned with what His Excellency the President,”he said.
