Vice President Yemi Osinbajo on Tuesday said that the sum of N10 billion has been approved by the National Executive Council (NEC) to rebuild destroyed areas in Benue and other crisis-ridden states in the country.
Osinbajo disclosed this at the Abagena Internally Displaced Peoples’ (IDPs) along Makurdi-Lafia road during his two-day visit to Benue State which commenced on today.
He said that President Muhammadu Buhari, after his initial visit to the state on March 12 this year, directed that a study be carried out in three strategic areas of security, destroyed homes and farms in order to identify what is needed to be done for the displaced people to return to their homes.
"All of these must be funded; so, the President approved some money at the Food Security Council to rebuild where there have been destruction in the country including Benue. N10 billion had been approved for that and we will begin work as soon as possible so you (IDPs) could rebuild your lives again," he said.
Osinbajo further explained that of the three needed things to be done; security would be improved to enable the people return to their various villages while destroyed homes as well as educational facilities would be rebuilt and farms/farmlands restored for farmers to return to work.
The Vice President who said his boss mandated him to ensure that the three necessities are put in place as quick as possible, appeal to traders, farmers and artisans to take advantage of the federal government’s micro-credit schemes such as the anchor borrowers programme to better their lots.
He assured the IDPs that all of their sufferings would henceforth come to an end.
Earlier, the Secretary of the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA), Emmanuel Shior, informed the Vice President that a total of 175,070 people comprising of 80,450 children were inhabiting eight designated camps across the state while an ongoing data collection was being carried out to determine the actual numbers of displaced people taking shelter in places other than the approved camps.
In his remark, Governor Samuel Ortom, acknowledged the additional troops deployed to the troubled areas of the state by the federal government in the past two weeks, saying that since their coming, the state had witnesses relative calm.
Ortom therefore appealed for more security to enable the people go back to their homes, adding that 69 babies were born at various camps so far.