A non -governmental organization, the South Saharan Social Development Organization (SSDO), has donated food and non-food palliative items worth million naira to 254 vulnerable households in Enugu State.

The items which were donated in partnership with the Nigeria Foundation for the

Support of Victims of Terrorism (VSF), was to cushion the effect of hunger over the Coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic lockdown.

Distributing the materials to beneficiaries in Enugu East council area yesterday, Executive Director of SSDO, Dr Stanley Ilechukwu, also said they were meant to meet the physiological and safety needs of the people.

“The COVID-19 inspired lockdown has presented a stark choice to families – to risk death or disability due to the virus or hunger/starvation due to loss of income.

“South Saharan Social Development Organization (SSDO) will continue to support the indigent and ensure they are not placed in a situation where they have to choose either,’’ he said.

Ilechukwu added that the exercise was being carried out simultaneously and successfully statewide with a working database of vulnerable households in the state.

He noted that the palliatives were being distributed with greater emphasis on Enugu East, Enugu South, Nkanu East, and Udi Local Government Areas; while focusing on widows, orphans, and People Living With Disabilities
(PLWDs).

Ilechukwu said that Nigeria was largely dominated by the informal sector which accounts for 60 percent of the working population.

“The main characteristic of the informal economy is that it does not have fixed wages or fixed hours of work and mostly relies on daily earnings. The survival of workers in this sector is based on them showing up for work every day,”Ilechukwu said

“Since the lockdown started in March, it has become difficult for informal economy workers to keep up especially traders and artisans, seeing that they make money from daily sales and services rendered,’’ he said.

Responding, a beneficiary, Anosike Chidinma, who is a nursing mother of triplets in Enugu East council area, thanked the SSDO and her partners for remembering her family in a difficult time.

“You don’t know what this means to me, ever since my husband realized that I was pregnant, even though we have four children already, he left us and never came back,” she said.

Another beneficiary, Mrs Veronica Ani, a blind woman who lives in Ogui-Eke community in Udi council area; another crippled, Mr Obinna Nweke, who lives in a zinc corrugated house in Oma-Eke community in Udi council area, appreciated SSDO and her partners for touching their family members with food and non-food
items.