A large scale holistic program continues providing emergency relief and early recovery, even as we transition to long term recovery activities in safer communities. Our response focuses on caring for the whole person and the community by providing basic needs, spiritual care, trauma healing, education, agriculture and community development.
Learn more about:
Home repair * Livelihood * Agriculture * Peacebuilding and trauma recovery * Children and education * Food & supplies * Primary medical care * Church strengthening * Finances * 5 Year Plan * Response partners
Home repair and returnee support
As people returned to burned and destroyed homes, the response funds are providing re-roofing for homes of the most vulnerable, which includes elderly, widows, and child-headed families.
Livelihood — Making a Living
One of the most effective ways to help a family recover is to enable them to work, earn their own money and help themselves. Included is support for micro business, skills training, and providing equipment and tools. This program focuses on the most vulnerable, especially widows with children.
Agriculture
Northeast Nigeria is predominantly an agrarian culture. Supporting agriculture is a key part to recovery and reestablishing livelihoods and hope in the region. A major push has been to provide seeds and fertilizer to thousands of farmers for spring planting. This will mean many more families can provide some or all of their own food after the fall harvest. The agricultural assistance includes two tractors, an international soybean project, and farm animals such as chickens and goats.
Peace Building and Trauma Recovery
Long term recovery is possible only when the cycles of violence are broken. A strong focus on trauma healing is critical for individuals and families. Promoting peaceful interfaith co-existence in local communities is essential. A large-scale trauma healing program has been operating for almost three years. The Nigeria Crisis Response and the Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) are working alongside EYN in supporting this important program. Children’s trauma recovery has also been introduced by Children’s Disaster Services. Nigerian leaders were given training and helped to develop a curriculum to provide education and help to parents, teachers and churches in supporting traumatized children.
Trauma workshop participants
Trauma healing program at school for orphans.
Children and Education
Providing education for children is a critical part of their long-term recovery and trauma healing. Many children have been out of school for two years or more. The response includes sponsoring a school in Jos, supporting orphans, providing school fees. A few new schools have been started for displaced children in safe areas. In some communities, displaced teachers have been employed, using relief funds, to run temporary schools so that education can continue.
School under the trees at Gurku
Food and Household Supplies
Distribution of food and basic household supplies is an ongoing cornerstone of the relief effort. A typical distribution includes corn or rice, vegetable oil and spices. Lack of farming and a growing food crisis means food distributions will continue as long as there is famine in the region.
Distribution in Maiduguri
Primary Medical Care
Medical care is being provided in temporary camps, churches, as part of food distributions, at new relocation centers and at existing clinics in the Northeast.
Church Recovery and Strengthening
A critical part of this response has been to support EYN leadership, so they can help lead the recovery efforts. Through church strengthening, EYN has built capacity to be the largest response partner is this crisis. Through this effort temporary EYN headquarters were established in Jos, key meetings were supported and housing for displaced national church leaders were provided. In September 2016, with improved security around Kwarhi, EYN headquarters has returned to its original site. Leadership faces many challenges during this difficult time of recovery. Solar powered internet connection was installed; giving easier interaction with the broader world.
Internet installation at EYN headquarters
Response finances
Giving statistics
| COB Nigeria Crisis Fund Raising | 2014-15 | 2016 | 2017 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Special COB funds from other ministries | $1,500,000 | $1,500,000 | ||
| Donations (individuals, churches & districts) | $2,383,492 | $551,294 | $395,169 | $3,329,955 |
| Grants: CAM & Other Churches | $340,000 | $235,000 | $30,000 | $605,000 |
| Total funds raised | $4,223,492 | $786,294 | $425,169 | $5,434,955 |
| Areas of Ministry/Relief Activity | 2017 Activities |
|---|---|
| Home Repair & Rebuilding | 64,412 |
| Peace Building and Trauma Recovery | 56,997 |
| Agriculture & Community Development | 107,975 |
| Livelihood (Making a living) | 32,747 |
| Education (Children including orphans) | 65,847 |
| Food, Medical & Home Suppplies | 91,590 |
| Bore holes/WASH | 16,600 |
| EYN Strengthening (Church Recovery) | 32,694 |
| US Volunteers, Staff, Travel, Misc | 60,229 |
| Total | 529,091 |
| Areas of Ministry/Relief Activity | 2018 Budget |
|---|---|
| Home Repair & Rebuilding | 172,905 |
| Soybean ICBDP project | 30,000 |
| Peace Building and Trauma Recovery | 37,729 |
| Agriculture & Community Development | 52,879 |
| Women’s Socio-economic Development | 68,460 |
| Education (Children including orphans) | 44,845 |
| Food, Medical & Home Suppplies | 94,601 |
| EYN Strengthening (Headquarters) | 25,000 |
| Bore holes/sanitation | 10,501 |
| Capacity Building/Administration | 98,080 |
| US Volunteers, Staff, Travel, Misc | 45,000 |
| Total | 680,000 |
Five Year Plan
The five year plan is a comprehensive $11.2 million program that establishes the priorities developed in collaboration with EYN. It is based on a flexible framework that can adjust to the security situation in Nigeria As the crisis changes, our yearly goals will change to meet current needs. We are currently in Phase 3.
Phase 1 Emergency measures (2014-15)
Phase 2 The Long Journey Home (2016)
Phase 3 Rebuilding Lives (2017-2019)
- Food, Medical
- Home repairs
- Education
- Peace & Trauma work
- Making a living (widows)
- Agriculture projects
- EYN Strengthening/Disaster Team support
Response Partners
Ekklesiyar Yan’uwa a Nigeria (EYN, Church of the Brethren in Nigeria)
EYN is the primary COB partner receiving 70% of the response funds.
Center for Caring, Empowerment and Peace Initiatives (CCEPI)
With a primary mission to aid widows, orphans and women with children, CCEPI has expanded to meet broader needs in this crisis. CCEPI is focusing more on livelihood support for widows and orphans.
Lifeline Compassionate Global Initiative (LCGI)
This interfaith program started in Jos and is a model interfaith relocation project located close to Abuja with 62 relocated Christian and Muslim families. There are plans to build more homes.
Favored Sisters Christian Fellowship
FSCF is a group of several hundred women who are providing education for displaced children and orphans.
Education Must Continue Initiative (EMCI)
This partner is helping thousands of displaced children receive schooling in Yola, Lassa and Jos, Chibok and Maiduguri.
More information is available on the Resources page.