By Marima Willams currently from URR
Officials of the National Nutrition Agency (NaNA) recently met with the Regional Governor and some security officials in the Upper River Region (URR), to brief them on the processes and their roles in the “NAFA Quick” cash distribution exercise.
The Project Facilitator, NaNA, Mr. Malang N. Fofana, said they were again there to distribute cash to the vulnerable households, and that requires support from the security services because the cash is meant for only eligible households heads, and not any other family as mentioned by many.
According to him, when they started the first phase, they faced some challenges in terms of crowd control and how to ensure that people obey the Covid-19 preventive measures, “because at the beginning of the exercise we didn’t ask the securities [security agents] to help us. We thought we will be able to do it by ourselves but unfortunately, it wasn’t easy at all because we had difficulties in controlling the crowd; and we have difficulties for people to obey the Covid-19 guidelines.
“So, we reflect and ask for an enforcement from the security to help us in ensuring that the exercise is done, and is done smoothly”.
He also thanked the security officers for standing by them in ensuring that the work is done smoothly. Fofana further stated that during the first phase they were able to register sixty-nine thousand seven hundred and three households in the first round, and all that was possible because of the role these security men and women played.
However, the Project Facililator said they still need security’s assistance to smoothing the ground in terms of adhering to the Covid-19 guidelines, in observing the social distancing hence dealing with the crowd is not easy.
Maintaining this money is not for everyone, Fofana made it clear that it’s meant for a target and that target “is the household heads.”
Fofana is undoubted that those security officers would be able to help them in handling the crowd very well, and also tackle the little problems that they, as officials, face on the ground during the cash distribution.
He, therefore, appealed to the security officers to be vigilant and observant to ensure that nobody disturbs the flow of the work and for the entire process to become smooth and successful.
Mr. Abdou Aziz Ceesay, Programme Manager ( Head of SBCC Department) of National Nutrition Agency, hinted “for the fact that this is the final phase for the “NAFA Quick” [cash distribution] people will try all avenues to get the money even though they know they are not eligible households”.
Justiyfing his fears, he revealed there is this false information circulating in the country that anybody with an ID card is entitled to the cash transfer. But Ceesay underlined, “I repeat this, “NAFA Quick” cash transfer is meant for household heads only but not any individual.”
He noted that during the first cash transfer the number of the security personnel was 15, but in this second phase, which marks the final round of the “NAFA Quick” they have added extra 10 security officers. With the 25 security officers in URR, he explained each team would have five (5) security officers assigned to it.
Programme Manager of National Nutrition Agency, Mr. Bakary Jallow, acknowledged that without the help of these security officials they wouldn’t have been in Upper River Region that day, because dealing with cash is not easy.
The Deputy Governor of URR, Essa Conteh said they are very proud of the security officers for the fact that they have displayed their sense of professionalism during this cash transfer.
Notwithstanding, Conteh called on the officers to do more work in terms of smoothing the ground during this process. He also advised them to be more vigilant and adhere to their Terms of Reference (ToR).
“Obeying Covid-19 restrictions, I think, is a challenge; so this cash transfer is meant to tackle some of the problems faced by the vulnerable households in terms of food and other family needs,” the deputy head of URR remarked.
