VP Shettima outlines Nigerian govt’s plans to tackle insecurity in northern region

The Federal Government says it has launched a programme to address the economic and security concerns in the North, especially in the North-West.

The Vice President, Kashim Shettima, made this known at a meeting with the CONSCCIMA, a coalition of Northern States Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines, and Agriculture, at the Presidential Villa in Abuja, on Wednesday.

Dalhatu Abubakar, the president of CONSCCIMA, led the group into the meeting with the vice president.

In the discussion, the Vice President stated that the North requires re-engineering and re-strategizing to expedite growth in the region.

“The PULAKU initiative is a robust solution towards addressing the challenges in the north-west. It is a solution aimed at addressing the challenges of armed banditry, kidnapping and the situation in the north-west which cannot be divorced from the issue of governance,” Shettima noted.

Read Also: Why Nigeria did not apply to join BRICS —VP Shettima

Also at the State House, traditional leaders from Nasarawa State led by the Chairman of the Nasarawa State Traditional Council, His Royal Highness, Retired Justice Sidi Bage paid a visit to the Vice President, during which he commends their role in the promotion of cultural heritage in the country.

“You are the custodians of our rich cultural heritage. The people listen to you more than to us because you are the closest to the people. We appreciate you and we value you because you are our link to the past,” the Vice President stated.

A 2022 report published by the Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD) revealed that that at least 60,000 people have been killed in Nigeria’s 18 northern states in the last 10 years due to insecurity.

The report titled “Multiple Nodes, Common Cause: National Stocktake of Contemporary Insecurity and State Responses in Nigeria,” stated that in the Northwestern states of Jigawa; Kaduna, Kano, Kebbi, Sokoto and, Zamfara about 14, 000 people lost their lives between 2011 and 2021.

The report, which was signed by CDD Director, Idayat Hassan said the report also measured conflict related casualties in the North Central states of Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Kogi, Kwara, Nasarawa, Niger and, Plateau revealed that around 11, 000 people were killed in the period under review, while about 35, 000 people were killed in Northeast states of Adamawa, Bauchi, Borno, Gombe, Taraba and Yobe.

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