Abuja, 21st June 2019. As parts of events marking the 2019 World Refugees Day (WRD), the Commission of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) donated food items, matrasses and mosquito nets to refugees in Abuja, Nigeria on Friday, 21st June 2019.

The event was organised with support from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the National Commission for Refugees, Migrants and Internally Displaced Persons (NCFRMI) of Nigeria.

The World Refugees Day is celebrated on the 20th of June every year to develop programmes and activities to create awareness for the plights of refugees and IDPs worldwide who fled their homes because of conflicts and war.

The theme for the 2019 WRD campaign is “Take a Step with Refugees”.
Dr. Sintiki Tarfa Ugbe, the Director of Humanitarian and Social Affairs of the ECOWAS Commission, while handing over the items to the NCFRMI to be distributed to the Refugees encouraged them to prosper as ECOWAS and other partners are “taking the step” with them in their journey to self-reliance.

The representative of the Refugees, Kinastine Onpoh Efile from Southern Cameroon thanked ECOWAS for easing their problems and promised to use the items prudently.
About one hundred refugees benefited from the donation.