Agency recorded 410 births, 187 marriages at IDP camps in 2 months

The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) says over 410 births and 187 marriages were recorded at Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) Camps in Borno and Adamawa in August and September.

This is contained in a statement issued by NEMA and made available to the News agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Wednesday in Abuja.

The statement quoted Mr Muhammad Sani-Sidi, the Director-General of NEMA, as disclosing this when members of “Bring Back Our Girls” advocacy group, led by Mrs Oby Ezekwensili, paid him a courtesy visit.

He said that 100 marriages were conducted in Maiduguri camps, while 87 were conducted in Adamawa camps.

Sani-Sidi said that emergency education for IDPs Children had become a major priority after many insurgency attacks on students, teachers and schools from where about 269 teachers lost their lives.

He said that the agency, in ensuring efficient management of camps, had trained personnel in Camp Coordination and Camp Management (CCCM).

The NEMA boss said that it had also deployed the personnel to manage various IDP camps in Borno, Yobe and Adamawa.

He said that in addition to the CCCM, the agency would provide the special needs of vulnerable people during emergencies.

Sani-Sidi advised the advocacy group to extend its platform to other issues like unaccompanied minors and mass child births in the camps.

According to him, this is because disaster management is multidisciplinary, multidimensional and multitasking.

Ezekwesili, had earlier, expressed displeasure with the abduction of the Chibok girls, saying that Monday marked the 596th- day of their abduction.

She called on NEMA for more cooperation and mobilisation efforts to protect and care for the vulnerable in the society.

Mrs Aisha Yesufu, the Chairman of the group, said that their visit was also to seek collaboration with NEMA in areas of education, living conditions in camps, security, health and other areas.

She also sought to know how their platform could be helpful in supporting efforts of Federal Government and the IDPs in areas the agency deemed necessary.