Humanitarian response alone can’t solve Northeast problems – Kallon

Humanitarian response alone cannot solve Northeast problems, Edward Kallon, the United Nations Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator in Nigeria has said.

He made this assertion on Monday while speaking at the opening ceremony of a two-day workshop organised by the Presidential Committee on the North-East Initiative (PCNI) on new ways of working, in Abuja.

Kallon, who is also the Resident Representative of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Nigeria, said a three-way approach must be adopted to achieve a durable solution for the Northeast.

“There must be continuation of the counterinsurgency action by the military. This also include political processes of cohesion, reconciliation and peace building,” he pointed out.

Kallon added that while military actions were ongoing, all actors must meet the humanitarian needs of the communities, adding that “we must help the communities cope and recover from the crisis.”

He said the third leg of the strategy was to address the root cause of insurgency which, according to him, included underdevelopment, poverty, human rights abuse and climate challenges.

Earlier in his welcome address, the Vice Chairman of PCNI, Tijjani Tumsah said the workshop was to sensitise government ministries, departments and agencies, civil society and other stakeholders on the new ways of working and its relationship to the ongoing rebuilding efforts in the Northeast.

He said the workshop will also review and generate inputs on a number of smart, practical and measurable collective outcomes across thematic areas over the next three years response in the Northeast and other conflict affected areas of the country.