By Fehintola Ambali
The Dangote-led Presidential Committee on Flood Relief and Rehabilitation (PCFRR), known as Dangote Flood Committee has commenced the distribution of relief materials, worth N1.5 billion to victims of flooding nationwide.
The PCFRR, which was established by the Federal Government following the 2012 flooding, is co-chaired by Africa’s foremost industrialist Aliko Dangote and Dr Olisa Agbakoba.
The flagging off ceremony for the relief materials distribution for this year started in Borno State and was conducted by the State Governor, Professor Babagana Umara Zulum Tuesday in Maiduguri, Borno State capital.
The Governor thanked the Dangote Flood Committee and promised that he will ensure that the items get to the victims.
UNICEF revealed that the 2022 flood killed 600 people, displaced 1.3 million and destroyed more than 82,000 homes in Nigeria, therefore making it the worst in decades.
The Representative of the Dangote-led Presidential Committee on Flood Relief and Rehabilitation (PCFRR), Alhaji Umar Musa Gulani assured at the flagging off for the Northeast zone that the exercise would also be conducted in the other five geopolitical zones of the country.
Gulani said the items from the Committee have been officially handed over to the Borno State Government and the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA).
He said the exercise would be conducted across the six geo-political zones, beginning from the northeastern State of Borno.
The breakdown of items donated includes 86 bags of rice, 34 bags of beans, 34 bags of maize, 34 bags of millet, 34 bags of Guinea Corn, 34 bags of Garri, 86 cartons of noodles, 86 cartons of spaghetti, 86 cartons of macaroni and 86 bags of sugar, and 857 bags of cement, among several food and non-food items.
Gulani said over N10 billion has been expended by the committee to mitigate the effect of flooding since inception in 2012, adding that no fewer than 84 Hostels have been built for flood victims in 24 states of Nigeria.
According to him, the private sector led project is highly commendable and it has been sustained in the past ten years.
“It is a selfless service from the private sector and Nigerians should appreciate their selfless service to humanity,” he said.
Director General of NEMA, Alhaji Mustapha Habib Ahmed described the Committee’s intervention as a milestone for Nigeria in general, and flood victims in particular.
“Responding to the humanitarian outcomes of this nature requires concerted effort,” the DG said.
He added that the donation by the Dangote Flood Committee would eventually be made available to flood victims across the affected states in Nigeria.
Khalifa El-Miskin, who spoke on behalf of the victims, said the victims were extremely appreciative of the gesture.
The Committee had during the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, donated N1.5 billion to fight the virus. Dangote, while announcing the donation, said it was imperative for well-meaning Nigerians to help the Federal Government in fighting the virus.
The Committee also recently provided N250 million as relief assistance to victims of the devastating floods in Benue State.
Aside from the donation in Benue, the Dangote-led committee also revealed that it had also donated the sum of N150 million (in kind) to provide relief assistance to flood victims in Anambra State.
It also released the sum of N118 million to NEMA to augment the N1.6 billion released by the Federal Government for procurement of food and non-food relief materials in aid of the flood victims in the following 16 states: Abia, Akwa-Ibom, Bayelsa, Ebonyi, Edo, Ekiti, Enugu, Abuja FCT, Kebbi, Kwara, Lagos, Niger, Ondo, Oyo, Plateau, and Sokoto.
The Committee at its inauguration by former President Goodluck Jonathan raised a whopping N11.35 billion for flood victims.
Top on the list of donors at the event was Dangote and the Federal Government, who donated N2.5 billion each.
