By Achadu Gabriel, Kaduna
A humanitarian, Prince David Yilbel says for the renewed hope agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to be achieved, Nigeria should maintain the Humanitarian Ministry and jettison the suggestions from certain quarters that the ministry be scrapped.
Prince David Yilbel who made the observation in an statement made available to journalists Sunday explained that those suggesting the abolishment of the ministry are the greatest enemies of President Tinubu.
He stated that humanitarian ministry has come to stay given to the primary purpose of government “Which is protection of lives and properties and providing welfare for the people.
He however recommended reduction of allocation for the humanitarian ministry and
appointment of a minister that has international cloud to pull all the necessary funding for humanitarian purposes.
He also recommended a genuine humanitarian with proven track record of humanitarian efforts spanning over a decade, and a person with proven integrity, transparency and a compassionate heart for humanity, as well as one who possesses a unique blend of skills, traits and values to effectively address complex crises and protect human dignity.
According to him, “With the good intention of the renewed hope agenda and the untold hardship Nigerians are going through, the humanitarian ministry is the center peace for implementing this very hope Nigerians are yearning for”.
Earlier, the expert noted that “The humanitarian developmental divide has long been a contentious debate in the international system amongst state and non state actors”.
He stated that “Despite the recent surge in the cost, frequency, duration and severity of humanitarian crisis, humanitarian and developmental strides continue to operate in abeyance in Nigeria.
“The 2030 agenda for sustainable development was the outcome of an inter governmental negotiation adopted by the UN General Assembly in September 2015 towards “leaving no one behind”.
“The agenda for humanity on the other hand, is a frame work of action that came out of the word humanitarian summit of May 2016, which sought to build on the commitment made in the 2030 agenda which focuses on working together differently to end humanitarian needs interlinking the 169 SDG target of 2030 agenda”, he stated.
He continue that the “Humanitarian needs interlinking the 169 SDG target of 2030 agenda is with the 5 responsibilities, 24 transformations and 32 core commitments of the agenda for humanity considering that, the federal ministry of humanitarian services disaster management and social development is charged with the responsibility of developing humanitarian policies and providing effective coordination for national and international interventions; ensure strategic disaster mitigation, preparedness, response and manage the formulation and implementation of fair focused social inclusion and protection programs in Nigeria.
“The humanitarian development divide is nothing new. As early as the 1990s, it was argued by stakeholders that humanitarian assistants and socioeconomic developments should complement each other to be more effective.
“Many insisted that short term relive of urgent survival needs should not hurt long term capacity development. Pointing at the perils of institution building such as corruption amidst catastrophe and famine which fuel each other to compound economic distress and strive.
“Given to the renewed hope agenda of our dear President His Excellency Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the blurring lines between development and humanitarian mandate of government should not be sacrificed under the disguise of crass ineptitude and corruption that has bedeviled the humanitarian ministry since its inception by those who held sway as ministers”, he noted.
He also argued that a compendium of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for humanitarian efforts, focusing on global challenges such as poverty, inequality, and climate change, are inevitable to human existence and the renewed hope agenda, quoting Goal 1 to Goal 17, respectively.
