By Rakiya A.Muhammad
In Ramin Kura, Sokoto State, thousands of IDPs endure daily hardship, struggling with unmet needs.
Persistent health issues, inadequate care, harsh weather, and scarce livelihoods drive hardship in the camp.
Grandma Mariam, resting against a tree, laments, “Many of us have health problems. We need medical care and support for our livelihoods.”
Inna Rabi, a mother of five, also shares: “We suffered the rains and now harmattan. We want help. We’ve tried to reach authorities, and God brought you.”
“Harmattan has started. We want to move into the building but it isn’t completed. Ten women share a room; some sleep outside. About 2,000 of us stay here.
“We also require improved security measures, as theft remains a concern.”
Amid these challenges, the IDPs acknowledge the Governor Ahmad Aliyu administration’s efforts but urge greater action to address their ongoing difficulties.
They appreciate the state acquiring the property where they stay, which protects them from past threats. After the acquisition, they feel secure from further displacement.
The Governor Ahmad Aliyu-led government pledged to protect and assist citizens affected by conflict and disaster. During last Ramadan, it allocated ₦800 million for clothes, food, and monetary gifts—helping thousands across the state’s 23 local governments.
A state government committee tallied over 70,000 IDPs in Sokoto: 28,558 females, 13,364 males, and over 35,000 children.
Grateful for aid, IDPs still need support for health, food, shelter, and education.
The persistent gap between aid and urgent needs highlights the critical need for a coordinated, comprehensive humanitarian response.
Many children in the camp lack education; they dream of becoming doctors or teachers, but these hopes remain distant as they support families after losing fathers to attacks.
They care for mothers and siblings, their dreams confined by camp fences.
Women engage in petty trade within the camp, balancing supplies and family needs. Some take goods on loan and repay after sales. “We have little capital and survive on little,” says Mariya. “We need business support.”
The plight of IDPs is not limited to Ramin Kura. Many others lament their deplorable conditions.
Inna Aisha, among the displaced, stays in a temporary, uncertain shelter in the Guiwa area after fleeing violence.
Facing further displacement, she laments, “We sought safety here, but the owner sold the building, and we must leave.”
Children begging in the metropolis have become a common sight; most are displaced.
Despite interventions led by the state government and non-state actors—including efforts providing vulnerable children with access to quality education, healthcare and empowerment initiatives—significant challenges persist.
Abdulganiyu Abubakar, CEO of Save the Child Initiative, worked with state and non-state actors, including the Ministry of Women and Children Affairs, UNICEF, and the Arabic & Islamic Education Board to provide the interventions.
He reveals that they provided vulnerable children, including adolescent girls, access to quality education and healthcare in Sokoto. They offered non-formal education and skills in poultry, carpentry, tailoring, and cap-making, along with support materials. They also empowered parents, especially women, to care for these children.
Yet conditions for children on Sokoto’s streets show much remains. A walk through the state capital shows how vulnerable children are.
The child rights advocate acknowledges the situation of displaced children on Sokoto streets is worrisome, describing it as a time bomb.
He notes the needs of displaced persons, including food, clean water, shelter, and medical aid, and identifies the need for poverty-reduction programmes to address these needs and for sustained investment in education.
Amina Mahmud, a former aid worker, calls on humanitarian and other organizations to immediately deliver health, financial, and social support to displaced persons by providing medical aid, emergency funds, and counselling services,
She urges all stakeholders to act together now—delivering medical relief, food, livelihood support, and practical help—to immediately reduce suffering and protect vulnerable families.
“Only by moving together from empathy to action can we improve their lives.
