How Ucare, ECOWAS Saves Lives At Makurdi IDP Mega Camp

By; ARCHIBONG ESUENE, Abuja

Ucare Nigeria, with support from the ECOWAS Peace Fund, has saved lives at the Makurdi Mega Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camp as the body embarked on massive free medical outreach especially on mothers and children that are unborn.

Mrs. Mwuese Asan, a pregnant woman told New Nigerian Newspapers (NNN) in Makurdi that the intervention of Ucare Nigeria during a free medical outreach organized by Ucare at the camp, served her life and that of her unborn child.

The exercise NNN learnt, marked the conclusion of the organisation’s pilot intervention programme, that had earlier covered Ichwa and Abagana IDP camps in the state primarily for the health needs of the IDPs.

According to her, “I thank Ucare and ECOWAS very much because I am pregnant and have been attending antenatal care here in the camp. But each time I go, they tell me there is no medicine. They only prescribe drugs for me, which I cannot afford,”

Mrs Asan narrated how she was earlier given a prescription that would have cost her ₦11,500 to purchase, “I didn’t have the money. But today, Ucare gave me the medicine free of charge. I can’t thank them enough. They have truly saved me and my baby.”

In his contribution, the Camp Manager of the Makurdi Mega Camp and representative of the Benue State Emergency Management Agency (BSEMA), Mr. Mark Terver, described the intervention as timely and comprehensive.

“We are very happy this intervention came at this point in time. It covers almost all categories of people in the camp – children, adolescent girls, and pregnant women. We now have dignity kits, mosquito nets, a borehole, and a block of latrines,” Terver said.

Mr Terver explained that the support is addressing critical needs such as malnutrition among children and lactating mothers and appealed for more interventions in education for out-of-school children, while stressing that “nutrition remains the most pressing need for now.”

An adolescent in the camp, Miss Salome Barnabas, also expressed gratitude for the dignity kits distributed to young girls.

“For adolescent girls, this is important because we don’t have money to buy sanitary pads. Life here is not like at home where we could get basic things easily. In the camp, we depend on people to bring us help,” she said.

Speaking on behalf of Ucare, the organisation’s Communication and Reporting Officer, Mr. Uche Aondofa Paul, said he felt fulfilled and encouraged by the positive response of the IDPs to the interventions.

“We feel fulfilled seeing that the IDPs are happy with what Ucare, with funding support from the ECOWAS Peace Fund, has provided – from medical outreach and treatment of common illnesses to solar lights, a solarized borehole for clean water, and modern toilet facilities inclusive of people with special needs,” he noted.

According to him, work is ongoing on the borehole and toilet facility at the Makurdi Mega Camp, which wil be commissioned soon.

“Like we did in Ichwa and Abagana, we are working stage by stage, camp by camp. The outreach has been conducted here, and in the next two days, the other projects will be ready for commissioning,” Uche assured.