- The billionaire’s donation to the IDPs should galvanise our rich into empathy
It was a humanitarian gesture that helped to highlight the needs of the people displaced by the Boko Haram insurgency in Borno State as well as the need to help them. It was particularly remarkable because the support came from private pockets and not from the public purse.
When on May 9 the President of Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, made a donation of N2 billion to internally displaced persons (IDPs), he also made a powerful statement by his example. Apart from being the single largest donation by an individual, what Dangote gave reflected his appreciation of the enormity of the humanitarian crisis caused by terrorism.
This exemplary humanitarian response was reinforced by Dangote’s presence. It was a demonstration of empathy that communicated the humanity of Nigeria’s and Africa’s richest man. He was touring IDP camps in Dalori and Bakassi in Maiduguri, the Borno State capital, when he announced his relief package which he said would be delivered through the Dangote Foundation.
Dangote said: “This is not the first time I am coming here and it will not be the last. So far, we have expended about N1.2 billion in efforts to alleviate the suffering of IDPs across Borno, Adamawa and Yobe states. The first major challenge is the physiological needs of these people, and food, nutrition rank right on top of that ladder. So we will first make serious effort to ensure that hunger is eliminated from the IDP camps and thereafter, we will begin to make effort to create jobs and boost entrepreneurship.” He added: “The effort to create jobs and boost enterprise in this case will not be about making money or returning investment, rather it will be primarily to create opportunities for the people.”
This is a welcome expression of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), and it should be emulated by the country’s big private-sector players. It is noteworthy that recent statistics by the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) put the IDP population in the country’s Northeast at 2.2 million. According to UNHCR’s Representative to Nigeria, Ms Angele Dikongue- Atangana, who gave the figures at its yearly stakeholders’ briefing in Abuja in November last year, “The number is increasing specifically because regaining control of the territory by the military opened further access for the humanitarian officials so they can count many more IDPs, be they old IDPs or very recent ones.” To a large extent, the IDPs in question are products of acts of terrorism by the Islamist terror group Boko Haram, which has tormented the country since 2009.
It is hoped that Dangote’s action would galvanise others into action, especially considering the picture of inaction painted by no less a person than the Chairman of Northern Traditional Rulers Council and Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Sa’ad Abubakar III, who had observed that funds raised for the sake of the IDPs had not reached them. At the opening of the council’s second general assembly in Kaduna in November last year, the Sultan said: “When we go into closed session, we will discuss that thorny issue of displaced persons, mostly in the Northeast. It is a very sad situation; people are suffering. Billions and billions of naira have been collected or put aside for their welfare… It is important that this money be disbursed immediately via the governors.”
The Sultan added: “We want the governors to take the issue more seriously; take it up with Mr. President and ensure the release of the funds because I was part of the team when this money was collected for the IDPs during the last government. They should find out where that money is and disburse it immediately.”
This background helps to further underline the value of Dangote’s charity. The innocent people, who are not only displaced, but also distressed, deserve help.
Ultimately, giving back to society, which is the essence of CSR, is a desirable social action. Dangote’s example should serve as a wake-up call.
