Uthman Abubakar
The United Nations Children’s Fund has donated a primary healthcare clinic to the Borno State Government to cater to surrendered Boko Haram insurgents, their families, and other women and children affected by the violent conflict in the state.
The intervention, according to UNICEF Chief of Borno Field Office, Phuong Nguyen, is in line with UNICEF’s commitment to the implementation of the Primary Health Care Memorandum of Understanding with the Borno State government.
The facility, built and equipped at USD 179,000 provided by the German Development Bank, is situated at Borno State Hajj Transit Camp, Konduga Local Government Area of the state, where the Boko Haram ex-combatants and the families are camped.
The camp, at a time, contained over 160,000 surrendered Boko Haram fighters. With the reintegration of thousands of them to their home communities, their number has reduced by an undisclosed percentage.
Nguyen, said the donation of the healthcare facility was advised by the Humanitarian Needs Overview of the global agency which estimated that a quarter of health facilities in North-East have been destroyed or rendered non-functional by the insurgency.
“Since 2022 (when the insurgents began to surrender enmasse) Hajj Transit Camp has occasionally been overcrowded, and at some point held over 22,000 individuals,” she recalled, adding, “The camp has had outbreak of measles and cholera with women and children bring the most affected.”
Nguyen said the healthcare facility is aimed at supplementing the efforts of Borno State government in the health sector towards addressing the gaps to ensure that the most disadvantaged children and women have a chance of survival.
“UNICEF is heartened that dome of the most vulnerable groups in Borno State can now access quality and high-pact healthcare services at the transit camp,” the Borno UNICEF field office chief said, adding, “the facility will strengthen the capacity of health workers to respond to the health needs of women and children affected by conflict.”
She recalled that in 2023, UNICEF, through the Borno State Primary Health Care Development Board, supported the vaccination of over 27,000 children with the measles vaccine and over 4,083 zero-dose children with the pentacle vaccine at the Hajj Transit Camp.
The donated facility is equipped with basic medical equipment and furniture like delivery beds, baby dressing tables, bed screens, stretchers, bed-side trolleys, examination tables and oxygen concentrators, among others.
It is also equipped with solar alternative power supply source to ensure 24-hour service.
Receiving the clinic on behalf of Governor Babagana Zulum, the Secretary to the Borno State Government, Bukar Tijjani, thanked the thanked the global agency, assuring that the facility would be utilized for the purpose.
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