ICYMI: FG to get $1m AfDB grant to support flood victims

The Africa Development Bank (AfDB) says it will provide $1 million humanitarian aid to flood victims in Nigeria.

The development comes after Wale Edun, Nigeria’s minister of finance, wrote to the lender requesting the fund in a letter dated October 7, 2024.

In a document presented to the bank’s special relief fund (SRF) on November 12, the AfDB said the proposal directly responds to the call by President Bola Tinubu who announced a disaster relief fund in Maiduguri to assist Nigerian citizens impacted by floods.

On September 10, the Alau Dam collapsed, leading to the worst flooding in the state in 30 years.

The flood affected swathes of Maiduguri, culminating in the displacement of over 400,000 residents and the death of over 30 persons.

Reacting to the incident, Tinubu said the flood was a “natural disaster” that no one should be blamed for.

The president went on to announce the creation of a disaster relief fund, pledging to invite the private sector to collaborate in the rebuilding of affected Borno communities.

AfDB TO ASSIST 122,253 INDIVIDUALS AFFECTED BY FLOODS 

“The funding from the Bank’s SRF will be used to complement the Government’s interim response which is providing 25kg of rice and 10kg of spaghetti by delivering complementary pulses and rice to cover an estimated 122,253 people ( 24,450 households) in the sixteen most affected districts.”

“The aim is to provide consumption needs to affected households to diversify their food basket and address essential needs during four critical months between October 2024 and February 2025, thus enabling them to protect their livelihoods and avoid long term deterioration of their food and nutrition security.

“The support will be a one-off food transfer of 35 kilograms (25kg of rice and 10kg of beans) per household.”

‘FUND WILL BE DISBURSED THROUGH THE WORLD FOOD PROGRAMME’

The bank said though the Nigerian government has made some “financial commitments towards this support”, a significant funding gap exists.

The AfDB said the total grant of $1 million will help address an important component of the early recovery efforts in the country.

According to the document, the AfDB’s special relief fund is expected to disburse the grant through the World Food Programme (WFP), which will oversee food procurement and distribution.

“WFP has the capacity and expertise to directly plan, operate, and launch emergency food assistance at the proposed scale,” the bank added.

“WFP will directly execute and monitor the implementation of the emergency food transfers.”

The lender said the WFP has initiated the process of shortlisting cooperating partners field-level agreements that will be implementing the distribution of food to the targeted households.

The AfDB said due to the urgency of the proposed operation, the funds will be released in a single tranche.

The bank said the disbursement will involve a direct transfer to a WFP bank account, following the submission of the account details.

The document, however, noted that disbursement would be subject to the signing of the tripartite funding and implementation agreement between Nigeria, AfDB, and WFP.