Borno State Governor, Babaganna Umara Zulum, said his administration will prioritize the resettlement of internally displaced persons to their ancestral communities by constructing more houses across the state.
“The security situation in Borno State has improved by over 90%. We are doing very well. We have many safe areas, so we are going to do everything possible to ensure that houses are built and communities resettled in a dignified manner, according to the Kampala Convention,” Zulum said.
Zulum, who served as a special guest at the housing design award ceremony titled “Home after Crisis,” organized by the International Organization for Migration (IOM), stated this on Thursday in Abuja.
Zulum noted that about 90% of the houses in the state have been destroyed during over a decade of insurgency.
The governor, however, said that more than 40% of the destroyed houses have been rebuilt in the last 12 years by his predecessor, who is now the Vice President of Nigeria, and himself.
Zulum gave assurance of the needed political will to partner with the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and other organizations to ensure more houses are built.
“The government of Borno and that of the Northeast would provide the political will needed to partner with IOM and other organizations in order to build more homes for the families of displaced communities. Very soon, we will be entering into an agreement with IOM to see how we can partner together and build more houses,” he said.
Speaking earlier, IOM’s Chief of Mission to Nigeria, Laurent De Boeck, said the competition had about 1,600 designers, architects, and engineers from over 100 countries contested.
A total of 10,000 euros has been won, with the first-place winner receiving €5,000, the second-place winner receiving €3,000, and the third-place winner receiving €2,000.
Meanwhile, the first and second-place prizes were won by Nigerian architects, while the third-place prize was won by a team of German architects.
Other dignitaries present at the occasion included Member representing Marte, Monguno, and Nganzai at the House of Representatives, Engr. Bukar Talba, Minister of Youth, Dr. Jamila Bio Ibrahim, Rtd. Gen. Paul Tarfa, and Chairman of the Board of the Northeast Development Commission (NEDC), among other officials.
