The Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development will adopt a multi-faceted approach to cushion the effect of coronavirus pandemic on persons with disabilities.
A statement from the ministry in Saturday said it will focus on the poor and vulnerable, the elderly, refugees, IDPs, persons with disabilities, trafficked persons, petty traders, among others in its response to COVID-19 in the country.
The efforts of the Ministry will be part of the ongoing interventions of the Presidential Task Force on covid-19, but with a focus on the vulnerable groups in the country, reports Premium Times.
The Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Sadiya Umar Farouq, announced this after a meeting with all the agencies of the Ministry where strategies were fashioned out for the nationwide response with emphasis to target the most vulnerable groups in the society.
“We are in an emergency and work must start immediately,” the Minister directed.
The Ministry’s COVID-19 Response Committee comprises all the agencies supervised by the Ministry working jointly and speedily to deliver emergency relief to vulnerable segments of our society.
“Given the current global crisis as a result of the covid-19 pandemic, we must work together and deploy all of our resources in unison to support the national efforts for maximum impact,” the Minister emphasised.
The minister restated that the Ministry and the agencies “have a collective responsibility to respond to the Covid-19 pandemic and to save lives and alleviate suffering of people in line with its mission and mandate. It is also our responsibility to act and coordinate all interventions that promote social development and strengthen social systems that provide support for and protection of vulnerable groups in Nigeria.”
