Borno Lauds Switzerland For Partnering With State
Governor, Kashim Shettima, has praised the Government of Switzerland for partnering with the state and for being the first Foreign country to condole the state over the demise of the late Deputy Governor, Alhaji Zanna Umar Mustapha.
Speaking through Alhaji Usman Jidda Shuwa, Secretary to the Borno State Government on Monday, he said, "coming to condole us and to strengthen the cordial relationship developed over the years between Borno State and Switzerland Embassy stressing that this bilateral ties will yield oositive results for both countries esoecially at this trying oeriod of our history"
The governor said over the last six years,the state wasinvaded by insurgents the boko haram where about 20 local government areas were taken over by the insurgents, more than two million oeople mostly womenand children were rendered homeless while thousands of others were killed and billions of naira worth of orooerty werer destroyed.
He said with the coming into power of the present administration of President Muhammadu Buhari, GCFR, concrete steps have been raken to subdue the insurgents and eliminate them completely from our country.
He said in Maiduguri alone there are 23 Internally Displaced Persons(IDPS) camos with more than 1.6 million IDOS being catered for by the state government and National Emergency Management Authority(NEMA),
Governor Shettima said that considering the situation in which the srate finds itself and the meagre resources at its disoosal, there is need for foreign oartners and international organisations to come to the aid of the state esoecially in the reconstruction,rehabilitation and ressetlement of the destroyed comunities.
He said infrastructures such as schools, Hospitals, roads,bridges electrical facilities,public and private residential houses water facilies, telecommubication facilities, Army and police barracks and many more have been completely destroyed and require reconstruction and replacements.
Kashim Shetima further pointed out that these are beyound the resources of the state and even the Federak Government of Nigeria and therefore require the assistance of countries such as Switzerland and others to reintegrate and resettle the oeoole into their former abode and domiciles.
The governor reiterated that Borno is richly endowed with fertile land for agricultural activities especially the shores of Kake Chad and numerous river olains for the cultivation of wheat, rice , vegetables,sorghum, gum Arabic, cotton,soya beans, mango/guava and several others.
He said these crops could be grown in commeecial quantity to supoort orocessing and manufacturing comoanies adding that the state is equally endowed with minerals such as mangabnese,felzpar,kaolin, uranium, gypsum, limestone and riversand among others.
Governor Kashmi Shettima therefore solicited for the coooeration of Switzerland Government in reconstruction, rehabilitation and resettlement of the destroyed communities and in Recharging the laje chad by transferring water from Congo river with oartnering of the Lake Chad Basin Commission Countries as epwell as to project, the image of Borni in the Uerooean Union Ciuntries.
Earlier Dr. Daniel Covegn the Swiss Charge de Affairs who was accompanied on the visit by Mr. PascarHolligger the political adviser to the Swiss Embassy in Nigeria had condolded the government of Borno over the demise of Alh. Zanna Umar Mustapha late Deputy Governor.
He also announced that the Swiss government had approved the sum of eight million dollars to the crisis riden areas of the subregion.