ABUJA – The Civil Society Action Coalition on Education For All (CSACEFA) has donated educational materials to Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) at the Karamajiji camp in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
The National Coordinator of CSACEFA, Mr Tochukwu Okafor, who made the donation on Thursday in Abuja, said that the group’s gesture was a testimony to its resolve to help heal the trauma the IDPs were experiencing.
Okafor said that the materials donated to the IDPs were to enable them have access to education.
“People who are displaced we felt that the best thing that we can give is to support them educationally.
“Making sure that the gap is closed between what they have learnt before they ran away from their communities and what they should know at this moment.
“That is the essence of supporting them educationally; we have chalk boards, exercise books, schoolbags, pen and pencils.
“But you also know that in as much as you are trying to support somebody educationally, also they are hungry and whosoever that is hungry will never have the strength to learn.
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“That is why we also have few food items and support to give them. Our major prayer is that we overcome all these things.
“We are saluting the gallant of Nigerian soldiers who are doing very good to ensure that these people go back to school.
“Also, we are embarking on skill acquisition, especially for the youths and the women, so that when they go back to their communities, they will be able to engage themselves meaningfully because an idle man is the devils workshop.“
Alhaji Buba Usman, one of the displaced persons from Gwoza in Borno, thanked the group for the gesture, but said that he would have preferred to return home.
“Even if they are giving us one billion (naira) here daily, am not happy, it is better I die in my village.
“Enrolling kids in school here it is not easy, I took four of my children to school but fees they charged was too high so I decided to forget about it.
“Sometimes when I think of our present situation, I cry because we the indigenes of Gwoza focus mainly on reading and farming, there is no land to farm here. Am not happy.“
Usman also appealed to the Federal Government to provide security for the IDPs in the camps, adding that robbers often attacked them and cart away the relief materials donated to them.
He called for the tightening of security in the North East to prevent the insurgents from extending their activities to other parts of the country.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the women were trained on soap making to enable them to generate income and maintain basic hygiene.
NAN also reports that the displaced persons were also trained by the Nigerian Red Cross on how to administer first aid to convulsion and nose bleeding patients to enable to them treat their children when the arises.
Facilitators are deployed to the camps on a weekly basis to educate the children there and to monitor their activities. (NAN)