The Kano State Government and Nigeria’s National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) have distributed relief materials to 357 victims of recent fire disasters across several communities in the state, officials said on Saturday.
Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf, represented by the Commissioner for Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Adamu Aliyu-Kibiya, said the support would help restore livelihoods and ease the suffering of affected residents.
The beneficiaries included residents of Dunkura Kodi, Dinyar Katakau, Babuha and Tum communities in Kibiya Local Government Area, as well as traders from Fatima Simra Multipurpose Market in Nassarawa Local Government.
“We appreciate NEMA’s timely intervention and continued partnership in disaster management,” Aliyu-Kibiya said, adding that the distribution would be transparent to ensure it reaches genuine beneficiaries.
NEMA’s Director-General, Zubaida Umar, represented by Nura Abdullahi, Head of NEMA’s Kano Operations Office, said 200 victims were from Kibiya and 157 from Fatima Simra Market.
“The relief items are not intended to replace what was lost but to ease hardship and help victims recover,” Umar said. The supplies included rice, maize, spaghetti, vegetable oil and seasoning cubes.
Umar urged residents to adopt fire safety measures and proper handling of electrical equipment, noting that most fire incidents were preventable.
The Executive Secretary of the Kano State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA), Isyaku Abdullahi-Kubarachi, said a joint assessment had been carried out before the relief effort was approved.
Speaking on behalf of the beneficiaries, Nasiru Adamu-Abdul’Aziz, vice chairman of Kibiya Local Government, thanked both the federal and state governments for their intervention.