The Norwegian Refugee Council on Thursday praised the Federal Government for its continued efforts in combating banditry in the North-West, stating that improved security and order have been restored to the region.
This was revealed by the NRC Country Director in Nigeria, Thomas Hill, during an exclusive interview with PUNCH Online at the council’s end-of-year exhibition and localisation spotlight.
The praise comes one month after the Minister of Defence, Mohammed Abubakar, told journalists that the establishment of a command and control centre in the North-West zone was a crucial step in tackling the growing security threat.
The minister made this statement during a courtesy visit to Governor Uba Sani at the Government House in Kaduna.
Hill believes that the government’s efforts have made the North-West more accessible to residents and foreigners visiting the region.
He said, “We have seen in the North-West how the government has managed to implement improved security over the years, especially in areas that were previously inaccessible to international actors. They have also rescued many locals.”
“I believe a strong peace-building process and resolution in some of these complex situations will help significantly. In the international community, we have been increasingly discussing the criminality in the North-West and how communities are becoming more vulnerable.”
Hill also expressed his admiration for the spirit of camaraderie and generosity among Nigerians, which he said had been validated by a recent survey.
According to the World Giving Index 2024, Nigeria ranked third among the most generous countries in Africa, following Kenya and The Gambia.
“Nigerians are truly generous. As the recent survey reported, I have seen people helping each other quite a lot here, which is a good thing. The number of non-governmental organisations in the country also attests to this generosity,” Hill said.
“We have witnessed how churches and mosques are helping people, which is similar to any civil society where multiple entities contribute in different ways. It’s impressive,” he added.
Earlier, the Executive Director of Concerns on Climate Change for Community Initiative, Bala Abraham, expressed concern that Nigerians are not taking the issue of climate change seriously.
Abraham noted that stakeholders in the country have been urging the Federal Government to include climate change education in the school curriculum.
He said, “Nigerians’ perception of climate change is very low because many people either don’t know or can’t even remember the basics. Four years ago, my organisation conducted a random assessment of schools and students to gauge their understanding of climate change, and the results were disheartening.”
“Given that students in this 21st century have little to no understanding of climate change, we must ask what we expect the broader society to do. It’s time we pushed the climate change discourse into the school curriculum. We’ve been advocating for this for three years but have yet to achieve it due to various protocols. It’s now necessary.”