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World Bank Policy Is To Give Special Attention To Post-Conflict Zone Like Northeast, Ezekwesili Defends Buhari

Obiageli Ezekwesili
Obiageli Ezekwesili

Former World Bank Vice President, Oby Ezekwesili has defended President Uhammadu Buhari’s appeal to the world financial institution to assist in rehabilitating people in the Northeast who have been devastated by Boko Haram conflict, saying that such assistant falls within the world bank policy
Oby Ezekwesili, who is currently the leader of the Bring Back Our Girls Campaign said that president Buhari’s statement was taken out of context by some media outfits, emphasising that it is one of the policies of World Bank to give more attention to post-conflict zones like the north-east.
The World Bank President, Jim Yong Kim, had said in a press conference in Washington DC that President Buhari requested concentration of the bank’s intervention effort in the northern part of Nigeria but some social media accusing Buhari of being a regional leader.
In a series of tweets addressing the issue, Ezekwesili said; “the terrible indecorous press release by Femi Adesina worsens a fractious debate. This FG cannot be leaders of toxicity in public debate. Healthy debates are important for managing our diversity. The government of President Buhari should reign in his media team and retrain them to be effective.
At the time they met in 2015, serious work and discussions already took place among Development Partners on HOW BEST TO HELP STABILIZE North East.”
She explained that “as a practice, post-conflict zones e.g. Northern Uganda, Northern CAR, Eastern DRC received special focus from World Bank. As the destabilization in the north-east worsened human development indicators in north-east Nigeria, our country sadly joined that list.
“Prioritising Reconstruction of Post-Conflict zone in ANY of those countries FACTUALLY PROVED to be KEY for REST OF COUNTRY GROWTH and STABILITY!”
Ezekwesili said that the prioritization of the north-east in the discussion between President Kim and President Buhari is not unusual, adding that it was an outcome of a 2015 meeting among development partners on how best to stabilize north-east.
She said that it does not mean that other regions in the country would be neglected.
“Prioritizing reconstruction of a post-conflict zone in any of those countries factually proved to be key for rest of the countries’ growth and stability. The benefit of becoming a priority is that our knowledge program (Economic and Social Studies) and a sizeable portion of the loan will target the area.
I want EVERYONE to KNOW that the statement made by the @WorldBank President @JimYongKim IS NOT AS IT SOUNDS.”[myad]