FG, United Nations to Raise $5bn Annually for Poverty Alleviation

The Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation announcing on Wednesday that the Federal Government and the United Nations, as well as other development partners to raise $5bn annually for Nigeria’s Humanitarian and Poverty Alleviation Trust Fund.

The ministry explained that the government, UN agencies, development partners, and ambassadors, among others, also committed to a coordinated approach and durable solutions for humanitarian response in Nigeria.

They resolved this during a humanitarian coordination meeting at the United Nations House, Abuja, where the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Betta Edu, engaged ambassadors, UN agencies, NGOs, etc, on their commitment to humanitarian crises in Nigeria.

“The meeting, which was at the instance of the minister, brought all the humanitarian responders in Nigeria under one roof, where they all committed to a durable, smart, and coordinated approach to humanitarian response.

The minister conveyed President Bola Tinubu’s appreciation to the UN agencies and development partners for their contributions to easing humanitarian challenges in Nigeria.

She, however, stressed that the era of uncoordinated and unaccountable, approaches to humanitarian response in Nigeria was over.

She explained that there is a need for the government to take the lead and properly coordinate as the days of operating in silos and duplicating efforts that lead to wastage, among other things, should be over.

She emphasised the Federal Government’s commitment to reduce, prevent, mitigate, and respond adequately to the humanitarian crisis in Nigeria in a more coordinated manner, thereby reducing poverty by 50 per cent.

On his part, the United Nations Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Nigeria,  Matthias Schmale, who spoke on behalf of UN agencies, expressed support for the government in its effort to tackle humanitarian challenges.