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UNFPA, KOICA country representatives visit IDPs camps in Borno

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3 years ago

May 25, 2021

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Director, Borno Ministry of Women Affairs, Falmata Hamza (left) Welcoming UNFPA Country Representative, Ulla Mueller at Muna IDP camp in Maiduguri on Monday

Ulla Muller, KOICA director, interact with some displaced women, GBV survivors

The Country Representative of the UN Population Fund (UNFPA), Ms Ulla Elisabeth Mueller, and Country Director, Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA), Mr Woo Chan Chang, commenced a working visit to Borno on Monday.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the two officials were at the Muna Internally Displaced Peoples (IDPs) camp on Monday to assess the place and interact with the people.

Addressing some women including survivors of Gender Based Violence (SBV) at the Integrated Maternal Healthcare Centre and Safe Space for Women and Girls funded by KOICA at the Muna IDPs camp, Mueller said they were in Borno to assess the situation and interact with the women.

She lauded the women for their resilience and assured them of sustained support in areas of maternal health and empowerment through skills acquisition training.

The KOICA director said that the agency, through UNFPA, had been supporting women and girls in the areas of livelihood, safe shelter, maternal and child healthcare services.

Responding on behalf of the women, Amina Garba, a displaced woman, said she had been at the Muna IDPs camp for about four years and had benefited from UNFPA support which greatly transformed her life, along with other women.

Garba said “I arrived here as a traumatised person but the counselling and other support provided to me boosted me to face the challenge.

“We learnt trades like tailoring and making pomade. We were provided tools and some capital.

“We now have knowledge on Gender Based Violence and how to expose perpetrators and how to seek redress.

“We also know hygiene and things like COVID-19 protocols.”

Another displaced woman, Fatima Mohammed, lauded UNFPA for impacting positively on the lives of women at the camp, saying they needed things like grinding and knitting machines to start business to further enhance their income.