Jinkai Aid Initiative, a non-governmental organisation (NGO) has built and donated a two-bedroom apartment to Mrs. Rahab Zakwe, a 35-year-old displaced widow in Ancha village, Bassa local government area of Plateau State.
Rahab, a mother of four children, was said to be among the victims of ethno-religious crisis who lost her husband and home to some yet-to-be-identified gunmen about five years ago.
Recall that 35 years old Rahab, alongside other natives of Ancha village in the Irigwe Chiefdom, Bassa local government area, Plateau State was chased from their ancestral home by armed men in 2017 as her house was razed and her husband killed by the night invaders. She had since then been putting up with relatives until the intervention which saw her home at Ancha rebuilt and handed over to her by the organization.
Speaking with journalists in Jos on Wednesday, after handing over the house, the Board Chair of Jinkai Aid Initiative, Nigeria, Professor Emmanuel Gye explained why the organization engaged in the gesture.
His words, “Nigeria and most parts of West Africa have been convulsed in ethno -religious clashes over the past several years. It is in response to this that the Jinkai Initiative was started by Nigerian Canadians with the sole purpose of alleviating, the suffering and challenges of the communities. Our vision is to build economically viable and thriving communities, and we are focussed currently rebuilding houses for these communities.
“Yesterday we were able to hand over the very first home that was built in Ancha village in Miango Bassa Local Government area to a widow. The design was done by Nigerian architecture students who took part in a nationwide design competition that was judged by an international panel of architects.
“The challenge was for them to use locally available materials and to design homes that can be built by low-skilled individuals. And they did not disappoint. The beneficiary was selected by the entire community after identifying them as the most vulnerable. The widow was able to select the design she wanted, and she was delighted to receive the keys to her new home.
“In our quest to relieve the challenges of these communities, we are starting here on the Plateau with the ambition of extending this support and services to other parts of Nigeria that have been similarly affected and we hope the template would be copied and replicated globally.”
He called on the government to recognize the legal title of these communities and to issue title documents to the beneficiaries so that “they have the security of property in the event of future challenges.”