Mu’azu Shehu
The Emergency Taskforce on COVID-19 of the Victims Support Fund (VSF), on Thursday, provided Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) facilities to three Secondary Schools in Kebbi state.
The benefiting schools are: Government Science Secondary School, Argungu; Army Day Secondary School, Birnin Kebbi; and Dominion College, Zuru.
The schools each received a solar-powered borehole with 4,000 liter capacity overhead tank, four hand wash stations, 2,000 pieces of reusable face masks, five pieces of four liters of hand sanitizers, 120 bottles of 500ml liquid hand wash and five cartons of bleach.
Presenting the items to officials of the schools at the ADSS, in Birnin Kebbi, Mrs Toyosi Akerele-Ogunsiji, the Chairperson of the taskforce, said the intervention was to assist the students and teachers.
“We have also given permission to reticulate the water facility into the community, so that even when the school premises is closed, people around the community can still access the water,” she said.
Akerele-Ogunsiji said the organisation was concerned about the plight of students and teachers, especially in densely populated areas because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The chairperson assured that VSF would continue to provide succor to vulnerable Nigerians, and institutional support to agencies involved in the fight against COVID-19.
“Following the successful implementation of the first and second phase of the VSF Covid-19 Emergency Intervention Programme in the country,
the VSF taskforce on COVID-19 has commenced, as part of the third phase of the intervention, with the hand-over of WASH facilities to schools in Kebbi.
“Kebbi state is our 29 states in terms of beneficiaries since the covid-19 task force of the VSF was set up in March, 2020.
“The hand wash stations have been set up in each of the three schools and the schools have been supplied with liquid hand wash, sanitizers and bleach,” she said.
According to her, the Task Force on COVID-19 is an emergency response team inaugurated by the Chairman of the VSF, Gen. TY Danjuma (Rtd).
“To provide palliatives to displaced persons and the vulnerable, as well as provide institutional support to agencies supporting the national effort to fight COVID-19,” Akerele-Ogunsiji said.
The chairperson urged the beneficiaries to judiciously utilise the facilities, adding that if properly maintained it could be useful for 20 years.
In her remarks, the First Lady of Kebbi State, Dr Zainab Shinkafi – Bagudu, commended the entire leadership and management of the VSF covid-19 task for the support to the schools in the state.
“The intervention was not for our school- age children alone but for the betterment of the good people of the state,” she said.
Shinkafi-Bagudu, who was represented by Hajiya Zara’u Wali, the Special Adviser to Gov. Atiku Bagudu on Women Affairs and Social Development, thanked the NGO for the support to the state.
She assured that the state would take ownership of the project and sustain it meaningfully.
In his remarks, Gov. Bagudu, commended the fund for executing such a project with multiplying effects in the state.
“The Chairman of the VSF has a neutral and patriotic disposition of siting projects anywhere in the country, irrespective of the religion, region, ethnic and tribal sentiments,” he said.
The governor, who was represented by the Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Alhaji Babale Umar-Yauri, called on other NGOs to emulate the chairman , assuring that the state would continue to liaise with the fund in order to sustain the promotion of social development.
Speaking on behalf of the principals of the schools, Alhaji Abubakar Sambo, the principal of ADSS, appreciated VSF for the gesture and assured of proper usage of the WASH facilities provided for the schools.