IOM offers Nigeria $1.8m support for flood victims

The International Organisation for Migration (IOM) has disbursed the sum of  $1.8m to tackle the impact of floods across Nigeria.

This information was contained in a statement by the organisation.

The firm said the fund would enable local and international non-governmental organisations to provide emergency humanitarian assistance to more than 180,000 people in Borno, Benue, Adamawa, and Yobe states.

According to the IOM Nigeria Chief of Mission, Paola Pace, “The dramatic flooding we are witnessing this year has devastated countless communities, displacing families and disrupting lives.

“Our priority is to ensure immediate relief and support is provided to those affected, ensuring they have access to essential services and the resources needed to rebuild their lives.”

The organisation added that the response, channeled through the Rapid Response Fund (RRF) would include shelter, non-food items, multipurpose cash assistance, protection, water, sanitation, and hygiene services to alleviate immediate suffering and facilitate timely recovery.

The RRF is a small grant mechanism that provides rapid humanitarian assistance to communities during external shocks resulting from natural and/or man-made disasters.

According to the IOM, the RRF is implemented across Nigeria through the provision of grants to national and international non-governmental organisations, allowing for immediate access to funds for life-saving interventions.

The first round of funding allocations for the flood response, totaling $1,861,189.224, started in August 2024 and was made to local and international non-governmental organisations such as the Salient Humanitarian Organisation, Solidarités International, Wadata Relief Care Initiative and Grassroots Life Saving Outreach.

Others are Sheriff Aid Foundation, Global Village Healthcare Initiative for Africa, Centre for Advocacy, Transparency, and Accountability Initiative, GOALPrime Organisation Nigeria, and Care Aid Support Initiative.

The IOM stated,“The funding complements existing allocations, including from the Central Emergency Response Fund and the Nigeria Humanitarian Fund, and will further contribute to strengthening protection services, including community-based protection services for children and women, as well as the prevention and response to gender-based violence in some of the targeted areas.

“More than 1.2 million people have been affected by floods across Nigeria this year, most of them in Borno State, which has been the epicentre of a protracted humanitarian crisis. The floods have caused unprecedented destruction, reportedly killing 300 people, destroying hectares of farmlands, and forcing hundreds of thousands of people to flee their homes in search of safety.”