GBV survivors get N25.5 million livelihoods take-off grants in Yobe

Survivors of Gender-Based Violence (GBV) have received N25.5 million in livelihood grants in Yobe State. The about 170 survivors are from Kukuri and Tandari communities in the state’s Potiskum and Nangere Local Councils.

Unveiling the livelihoods support in Potiskum, the Executive Director of the Portrait Lake Child Initiatives (PLCI), Dr Zara Yusuf, disclosed that the beneficiaries of the livelihood grants scaled through a series of training and other engagements to ensure the judicious utilisation of the funds. She stated that each of the beneficiaries will collect N150,000 take-off grants to restore their means of livelihood.

According to her, the livelihoods project was funded by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and implemented by the State’s Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) in partnership with the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and PLCI.

The Executive Secretary of SEMA, Dr Mohammed Goje, represented by the focal person, Ahmed Daya, urged the beneficiaries to manage the disbursed funds to rebuild and strengthen their business outfits, which had been destroyed by over a decade of insurgency. Goje also warned against diverting the take-off grants to other purposes.

The state coordinator of the UNFPA, Muktar Abubakar, noted that the UN agency is committed to responding to GBV by focusing on women and girls in the country. “The UN agencies ensure that women stand up on their feet for their human rights in society,” he said.