Borno State governor, Babagana Zulum, on Sunday flagged off the execution of eight projects to be handled by the Qatar Charity Foundation, in Maiduguri.

The projects include an orphanage, a school, clinic, staff quarters, sports ground, charity office, Juma’at mosque and shops.

Speaking at the inauguration in Maiduguri, Mr Zulum expressed gratitude to the foundation for choosing the state as a beneficiary for the projects which would have direct bearing on the lives of the people.

He recounted the devastating effects of Boko Haram insurgency, which claimed many lives and property in the state.

He said: “We have identified a total of over 100,000 orphans resulting from the Boko Haram crisis. These figures are the official ones; the unofficial figures are even higher than this.

“In the past seven years, we had about 3.2 million displacements, with about 50 per cent being resettled and about 1.2 million still in the IDP camps. 432 health centres were destroyed, 900,000 houses destroyed and over 5,000 classrooms were destroyed.

“What you are doing today will, Insha Allah, have a positive impact on our society. On behalf of the people and government of Borno State, I want to express my appreciation to the Foundation for this initiative. Be assured that the government of Borno State, under my leadership, will collaborate with you to ensure the success of this project.”

Mr Zulum said he approved 2.5 hectares of land to the foundation for the projects, assuring that he would provide necessary support for their smooth take-off.

He directed the Secretary to the State Government, Mallam Bukar Tijjani, to grant quick approval for requests made by the foundation.

Earlier, , representative of the foundation, Hamdin Bin-Abdul, said that the group’s humanitarian services would be expanded to cover the 27 local government areas of the state.

He said that the foundation would work in several sectors including water resources, social housing, economic empowerment, health, education, and social services.

“It gives us great pleasure to execute projects in Borno. We thank the governor for all the support, Insha Allah, we will use this centre to cover all the local governments in Borno State,” he said.

Highlights of the occasion include the presentation of certificate of occupancy to the foundation by the governor.

(NAN)