Yobe State Governor, Mai Mala Buni, has declared that relative peace has returned to all 17 local government areas of the state following years of insurgency, allowing farmers and business owners to resume their activities with fewer security challenges.
Buni made this known on Sunday night in Abuja during the Yobe Development and Partnership Roundtable, where he interacted with prominent indigenes of the state living outside its borders.
The governor explained that the improved security situation had allowed farmers to regain access to their farmlands, while business operators could travel across communities to conduct their commercial activities without major disruptions.
“Yobe State today enjoys relative peace across the 17 local government areas. Our farmers in the last few years have had access to their farmlands, while businessmen and women continue to traverse the length and breadth of the state conducting legitimate businesses peacefully,” he said.
Recalling the state’s troubled past, Buni said insurgency had claimed numerous lives, displaced residents, destroyed communities and deprived many survivors of their sources of livelihood.
“A few years back, our story was different, pathetic and despicable. Yobe, our dear state, the Pride of the Sahel, was plagued by a reckless, brutal and senseless insurgency security challenge. Many people were killed, others maimed, several communities displaced, and the surviving victims lost their means of livelihood,” he stated.
He praised the resilience of the people, noting that their determination to overcome the security challenges had played an important role in the state’s recovery.
Buni also admitted that rebuilding Yobe had been challenging due to the limited resources available to the government and the widespread destruction caused by the insurgency.
To encourage economic recovery, the governor said his administration had provided farmers with agricultural machinery and other inputs free of charge to improve productivity, enhance food security and stimulate economic development.
He added that the government had maintained low tax rates for businesses to help commercial operators recover from the effects of insecurity, noting that existing rates were left unchanged because they were outdated and unrealistic.
Education, Healthcare Achievements
On education, Buni recalled that his administration declared a state of emergency in the sector, particularly at the primary and basic education levels, upon assuming office.
He said the intervention had resulted in the reconstruction of 301 schools, the construction of 929 additional classrooms and the rehabilitation of 748 others.
The governor further disclosed that 15 mega and model schools had been established, alongside 10 new Government Girls Senior Secondary Schools to strengthen access to education for the girl-child.
He added that more than 9,000 qualified teachers had been recruited, while over 12,000 others had received training under the emergency education programme.
According to Buni, more than 50,000 students had benefited from government scholarships, while over 400 others were sponsored to universities in India to study medicine and engineering.
He noted that approximately 200 of the beneficiaries had secured employment with the state government and were already working in healthcare facilities across Yobe.
In the health sector, Buni announced that the West African College of Physicians had certified the Yobe State University Teaching Hospital for postgraduate residency training.
He also said the West African College of Surgeons had approved Damaturu Specialist Hospital for postgraduate training of resident doctors in obstetrics and gynaecology.
The governor added that his administration had continued to provide free dialysis treatment for kidney patients, as well as free healthcare services for pregnant women, children below five years and victims of road accidents.
Farmers Receive Free Agricultural Equipment
Speaking on agriculture, Buni said tractors, ox-drawn ploughs, hand tillers, fertilisers and improved seeds had been distributed at no cost to farmers across the state’s 178 political wards.
“We are now ready for the third phase,” he said.
The governor also highlighted his administration’s efforts to protect sesame farmers from exploitation by grain merchants from Dawanau in Kano State.
He explained that the traders previously visited rural communities towards the end of farming seasons to purchase sesame crops before harvest at considerably low prices.
Buni said his government responded by constructing roads connecting rural settlements to markets, making it easier for farmers to transport their produce and access better selling opportunities.
Yobe Sets Up Global Engagement Desk
Meanwhile, the governor announced the establishment of the Yobe Global Engagement and Partnerships Desk in the Office of the Secretary to the State Government.
He explained that the initiative would serve as a platform for coordinating engagements with Yobe indigenes living in different parts of Nigeria and abroad, as well as institutions willing to contribute to the state’s development.
Buni consequently directed the Secretary to the State Government, Dr Mohammed Goje, to develop an operational framework for the desk, covering coordination, information management and reporting.
Earlier, Goje said the roundtable was organised to enable the government to hear from indigenes of the state and harness their expertise in advancing Yobe’s development priorities.
“For clarity, this is an exploratory engagement. It does not seek or imply commitment,” he said.