World Poverty Day (17-10-2012): Nigeria grew more Poor, no thanks to Flood

The International Day for the Eradication of Poverty has been observed every year since 1993, when the General Assembly, by resolution 47/196, designated October 17 to promote awareness of the need to eradicate poverty and destitution in all countries, particularly in developing countries-a need that has become a development priority.

AS the world marks International Day for the Eradication of Poverty today, flood which has been ravaging many states of the country since August has worsened the incidence of poverty in Nigeria, the world’s largest black nation. Currently, the flood, which has affected five of the six geo-political zones of the country, has in the estimation of President Goodluck Jonathan rendered 25 per cent of Nigerians homeless. With a population of 167 million, it means that about 42 million persons have been displaced from their homes with large tracks of farmlands and means of livelihood destroyed.

States affected by the flood include Anambra, Imo, Delta, Bayelsa, Rivers, Edo, Kogi, Benue, Taraba, Adamawa, Bauchi, Kano, Niger, Kaduna,

At the Millennium Summit, world leaders committed themselves to cutting by half by the year 2015 the number of people living in extreme poverty – people whose income is less than one dollar a day.

The theme for this year’s International Day for the Eradication of Poverty – “Working together out of poverty” – highlights the need for a truly global anti-poverty alliance, one in which both developed and developing countries participate actively. Source