Borno State Governor, Babagana Zulum has laid the foundation for the construction of 600 houses at Amarwa Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) resettlement city in Konduga Local Government Area (LGA) of the state.

The houses being constructed by the National Commission for Refugees, Migrants and Internally Displaced Persons (NCRM-IDPs), along Maiduguri/Bama road, is to rehabilitate and reintegrate about two million displaced persons.

Upon completion, it will reduce accommodation problems of IDP returnees to the resettlement megacity.

Zulum, who pledged to collaborate with the commission to fast track the housing projects, said the resettlement of IDPs into their communities remains a priority to his administration.

He noted that the post insurgency recovery and peacebuilding assessment report of the World Bank, as well as the Federal and Borno State governments, shows that over 400,000 houses were torched by insurgents in the state.

He, however, lauded the federal government for its support in the housing sector to resettled IDP returnees in the state.

Earlier, NCRM’s Federal Commissioner, Senator Basheer Mohammed, said the resettlement city was initiated to restore the dignity of over 45,000 IDP returnees.

While announcing the return of IDPs at the Amarwa village, Mohammed disclosed that; the shelter has remained a major concern of internally displaced persons in the state.

He stressed that many IDPs are still taking refuge in over 20 camps and host communities across the state.

Mohammed, who also distributed some food items to Kawuri IDP returnees, said similar projects are being executed in Katsina State, while similar projects will soon commence in Edo and Zamfara states.

According to him, over a million IDPs are still taking refuge in various camps of Monguno, Dikwa, Gwoza, Bama, Banki, Pulka and Maiduguri metropolis, the state capital,” he said.

The over a decade long insurgency has also claimed 40,000 lives with property worth $9.2 billion (about N3.42 trillion) in Borno, Adamawa, and Yobe states.

According to him, the resettlement cities would be sited in areas where normalcy has been restored.

The Senator commended the President and Borno State government for their support.

He assured me that the project would be completed before the end of the year.