FEMA, JICA empower IDPs at Yimitu

Internally Displaced Persons,(IDPs), residing at Yimitu settlement in Abuja Municipal Area Council have been given a new lease of life.

This is following the training and handover of groundnut oil processing equipment to the IDPs by the Japan International Corporation Agency, (JICA), in collaboration with the FCT Emergency Management Agency,(FEMA).

In a remark at the handover ceremony, the Director General of FEMA, Alhaji Abass Idriss commended JICA for its numerous interventions in IDP settlements aimed at improving the lives of settlers.

Noting that IDPs lacked basic amenities like portable water, healthcare facilities and schools, the DG said such intervention by JICA would improve the wellbeing of the beneficiaries.

He appealed to residents of the settlement to utilize and manage the installed equipment judiciously for economic development.

Idriss also charged the residents to protect the equipment and to cascade the training to other women in the settlement.

In a goodwill message, the Managing Director of the North East Development Commission,(NEDC),Mr Alkali G. Muhammad represented by Hajiya Fatima Ciroma commended JICA for empowering women in view of the important role they play in society.

Hajia Ciroma urged the women to use the skill acquired and the equipment to generate income and live life with more freedom.

Also speaking, the representative of JICA, Mr Yuzurio Susumu said the intendment of the empowerment programme was to enable the IDPs fend for themselves.

Susumu informed that JICA has empowered over 500 IDPs on rice paddy and soap making.

He assured that JICA would continue to strengthen the capacity of IDPs to improve on their livelihoods.

Also speaking a beneficiary and Woman leader of the IDP settlement,Yimitu, Halita Joseph said the Programme would greatly improve the wellbeing of the women, adding that they had earlier been trained on soap making.

In a vote of thanks, the Acting Director of the Relief and Rehabilitation Department of FEMA, Engineer Abdulrahman Mohammed explained that since 2019 JICA, has been training IDPS on liquid soap making and urged the women to come up with a simple system to ensure that members of the community benefit from the equipment.

The highpoint of the event was the demonstration of the groundnut oil processing by the women.