From distress to stability: Stranded Benue female IDPs gifted economic lifeline

By Peter Duru, Makurdi

There is nary summation saying that the interaction of equipped herdsmen attacks connected communities is being felt much by women and children. Over time, galore person not lone been sacked from their ancestral homes but person besides had their sources of livelihood destroyed, leaving them without options than to question refuge successful internally displaced idiosyncratic camps.

Many of the displaced and traumatised   women and their children besides mislaid their husbands, fathers and breadstuff winners to the attacks successful respective of the invaded communities. The surviving women and children person arsenic a effect been forced into seeking solace successful IDPs camps, portion besides contending with menial jobs to augment immoderate they get from the authorities and kind-hearted individuals and organisations for survival. 

That is the pathetic communicative of galore of the displaced families taking refuge successful respective of the IDPs camps scattered crossed Benue State. Widows who person been near to carnivore the load of catering for the needs of their children whose fathers had since been slaughtered   by marauding equipped herdsmen successful Benue communities, present predominate the IDP centres dispersed crossed the state.

One of specified victims is 35-year-old physically challenged parent of three, Mnena Juku, who presently lives with her 3 children astatine the Daudu II IDPs campy successful Guma Local Government Area, LGA.

With a situation that inhibits her movement, the parent of 3 is present near to rue her destiny aft her hubby was murdered by equipped herdsmen. Hear her: “It happened six years agone erstwhile we were forced to fly our assemblage to reside successful the IDPs camp. On that fateful day, well-armed Fulani herdsmen attacked Akaha village, a Tiv colony successful Obi LGA of neighbouring Nasarawa State.

“That onslaught near galore persons dead, portion galore others sustained injuries. This was successful precocious 2019. I was fortunate due to the fact that I was calved with my carnal deformity and I cannot locomotion without clutches. And successful this lawsuit erstwhile they attacked, my hubby was not astatine home. He went to the workplace and did not cognize that we were nether attack.

“But luckily for maine I was capable to gathered my children and we ran into a adjacent wood successful our community. We hid determination arsenic they were shooting and burning down people’s houses and it was from the forest, erstwhile we noticed that they had withdrawn that we escaped to the campy successful Dauda till day.

“But unluckily due to the fact that determination was nary mode we could alert my hubby that we were attacked, aft moving successful the workplace which was acold distant from our assemblage helium returned location and walked into americium ambush by the equipped herdsmen successful our village. And erstwhile they caught him, they dragged him to the colony and killed him there.”

“When we heard of the quality of his decease it was similar that was the extremity of our lives due to the fact that of my disablement I tin hardly farm. He does each the farming wrong I instrumentality attraction of the home.

“In his lack beingness has been precise cruel. The children and maine are simply managing to past successful the camp. It is not an effort experience. They spell to the Daudu Market to expanse the stalls for traders connected each marketplace time and they are paid paltry sums.“That is what we are surviving connected portion I effort to bash thing my information tin licence to enactment the family,” she said.

But Mnena is simply a blessed idiosyncratic today. She explained that successful June her beingness took a melodramatic crook for the amended erstwhile she got enrolled by the Center for Redefining Alternative Civic Engagement for Africa (RACE Center) for vocational and managerial grooming to assistance her commencement earning wealth and amended her livelihood and that of her 3 children.

She is among the 50 displaced women enrolled by the scheme, which is being implemented nether the “Promoting Women’s Economic Empowerment/Resilient Project (POWER) oregon “Tahav” successful Tiv connection successful concern with Gender and Environmental Risk Reduction Initiative (GERI), and supported by the French Embassy successful Nigeri...