by Azeez Adeniyi

The United Nations (UN) has said that people who were earlier held captive by the Boko Haram face rejection from families and communities.

UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Nigeria, Edward Kallon said this on Friday in Abuja at his maiden media parley.

Kallon who is also the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Resident Representative in Nigeria also said over $1bn was needed for the needs of the 6.9m people targeted for rehabilitation.

“Insurgency situation in the North East and other parts of the country has negative implications for investment and long-term development in the region. It has already stalled and reversed most gains made by the country in improving the living standards on the people,” Kallon said.

He said though the challenges being faced were enormous, they were solvable.

He said the UN would support the federal and state governments to respond to the challenges.

He said the humanitarian crisis in North-East was the fourth biggest in the world.

Azeez