Governor Babagana Zulum of Borno State has pledged to repatriate about 12,000 refugees from Cameroon, as the road to Nigeria is open for the displaced persons taking refuge at the Minawao Camp.

The refugees, comprising women and children, were attacked and displaced by Boko Haram insurgents in the border communities of Ngoshe, Ashgashiya, Attagarawa, Barawa, Bokko, Kirawa and other settlements in Gwoza Local Council of the state in 2014.

While addressing the refugees at the Minawao Camp in the far north region of Cameroon, on Sunday, Zulum assured the refugees of his administration’s commitment to returning them to Borno with dignity and household livelihood support.

He lamented that the refugees, including those in Chad and Niger, had been living in camps and host communities for over a decade.

Zulum’s visit to Cameroon provided a sigh of relief to the refugees, as he interacted with them.

The governor further informed the excited refugees that adequate security arrangement had been put in place in their original communities, following years of expanded military operations and other civilian security initiatives across the Gwoza Local Council and other parts of the state.

Speaking on the refugees’ welfare, Zulum said: “The welfare of refugees, Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) and other returnees remains a priority for us,” noting that rebuilding the lives of Boko Haram victims is a major pillar of his administration’s humanitarian and developmental agenda.

The governor announced, before the refugees and other dignitaries, cash support for the rehabilitation of houses for those willing to return to Borno.

According to Zulum, the shelter-cash support is a measure designed to help the returnees commence rebuilding their destroyed houses.

Beside the shelter-cash support, he pledged to drill a borehole in each of the insurgency-affected border communities.

He said: “The Borno State Government, in partnership with the Federal Government, will provide cash assistance of N500,000 to each refugee willing to return to Nigeria,” adding that women households will each receive additional N100,000.

After making the pledge to the refugees and their camp commanders, Zulum toured the farmlands allocated to the refugees by the Cameroonian government which have become their source of livelihood.

He commended the resilience of the refugees and host authorities for their generosity to the Borno farmers, while assuring the farmers that when they return to their ancestral homes, the state government would support their agricultural activities by providing them with solar-powered irrigation facilities.

Responding, Governor of the far North Region of Cameroon, MijinyawaBakari, hailed Zulum’s unwavering commitment to the refugees’ welfare, describing the continued support for the displaced Nigerians in Cameroon as an exemplary and humanitarian gesture in sustaining diplomatic relationships between the two countries.

“Governor Zulum has consistently demonstrated genuine concern and responsibility for his people, even beyond Nigeria’s borders,” said Bakari. “He has sustained assistance to the refugees at the Minawao refugees camp.”