The American University of Nigeria has embarked on a rare fund raising drive: seeking N1 billion to enable it continue to feed those displaced by insurgency activities within its area of operations.
Already, the University, located in Yola, Adamawa State, is feeding over 276,263 victims of the Boko Haram insurgency.
The President of the University, Margee Ensign, disclosed this when she briefed newsmen at Victoria Island, Lagos on Friday.
Ensign said the University intervened in the Boko Haram crisis by feeding some of the displaced persons, offering admission to some of the Chibok girls who succeeded in escaping from the Boko Haram enclave and teaching those within its immediate community to read and write, the pressure had been on for the gestures not to stop.
Before the Boko Haram insurgency, the University had trained over 15,200 vulnerable youths.
Ensign said initially, some Imams thought she was converting the children from Islam.
But now the orientation had changed, with the clamour for the University to entrench the read and write culture in the children.
She said the statistics in Nigeria was frightening with 11 million children in Nigeria out of school.
And with the population of Nigeria projected to become the third largest in the world by 2045, the fear is that if drastic measures are not taken, the number of out of school children will increase astronomically.
Ensign equally spoke of the challenges in reaching the IDPs.
She said because of the rain, it has become difficult getting food and medicine to the IDPs in some areas of Adamawa State.
In a particular area, Ensign said five bridges had been blown off by the insurgents.
Some of the towns are equally unprotected by the security agencies, thus allowing the Boko Haram insurgents to have a field day.
Ensign said the 21 Chibok girls, who are now students of the AUN, “are now looking good”.
One of them, simply identified as Grace, said: “Education gives me the wings to fly, the power to fight and the voice to speak.”
An American is said to be offering $4 million for their education.
Ensign urged Nigerians to contribute towards the cause of feeding the IDPs before it becomes another crisis.