The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) has raised alarm over over the alarming increase social problems including; drug abuse, prostitution in the Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camp in Muna, Borno state.
The camp houses over 48,000 internally displaced persons in Borno State.
Abdullahi Sirajo, the agency’s North-East Zonal Coordinator, sounded the warning Wednesday at a town hall meeting with camp residents. To stop the rising tide of social issues, particularly among youth, he urged parents and community leaders to work with government officials.
“Our interaction was really productive. We talked about how to lower prostitution, drug misuse among young people, security risks, and other relevant topics,” Sirajo stated. “We assured the residents of NEMA’s continued support to ensure their comfort and dignity as they prepare to return to their ancestral homes, and several strategic measures were adopted to address these social problems.”
Sirajo, who was represented by Manir Gidado, the agency’s Head of Operations in the Northeast, added that the town hall signified the conclusion of a five-day pilot sensitization program designed to increase social resilience and disaster preparedness in accordance with international emergency management best practices.
On the outskirts of Maiduguri, the Muna camp now houses more than 9,400 households that were uprooted from Mafa and Dikwa LGAs as a result of the region’s ongoing conflict.
Following this, residents have also raised concerns about the deteriorating socioeconomic conditions in the camp, particularly the vulnerability of children and those with disabilities.
The community leader from Mafa, Nana Aisha, described the situation “frightening.”
“We’re not doing enough to stop our children from being exposed to all sorts of negative influences,” she remarked. She further revealed that some parents even rely on these kids to survive, regardless of how they make a living. “We are not formally or informally enrolling kids in school. How, therefore, are they able to distinguish between good and wrong? ” She stressed.
The camp’s chairman of people with disabilities, Abiso Kadi, added to the worries by bemoaning the deteriorating food situation and pointing out that many vulnerable inhabitants are finding it difficult to meet their basic necessities.
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