UNDP, Partners Restore Hope to Insurgent-ravaged Community in Northeast Nigeria

Uchechukwu Nnaike

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and its partners have released a documentary film, based on their recent intervention in Ngarannam community in Northeast Nigeria, which was rebuilt following attacks by insurgents.

The UNDP executed the project with support from the Federal Government of Nigeria, the Borno State Government, the European Union, Germany, The Netherlands, Sweden, and the United Kingdom.

The documentary film titled ‘Ngarannam: The Homecoming’ highlights the story of hopefulness by the community that was once lost in despair when they were forcefully removed from their homes following a devastating attack by Boko Haram.

According to the UNDP, the film, directed by a Nigerian award-winning filmmaker, Joel ‘Kachi Benson, provides an insight based on a first hand account into the lives of a community that suffered displacement as a result of the Boko Haram conflict.

“The film highlights the visionary and innovative approach of the Regional Stabilization Facility (RSF) – a groundbreaking programme, which aims to restore lives with dignity, and bring a sense of normalcy back to people facing conflict.”

It said the film is centered around three residents of the Ngarannam Village – Amina, Falmata, and Hassan, and chronicles a touching story of struggle, loss and fear as it follows their journey from the first 2015 insurgency attack on their village that launched their world into disarray, to the 2022 intervention programme engineered by UNDP.

“After losing everything following an attack by Boko Haram, residents of Ngarannam, a small community in Northeast Nigeria, now have a chance to rebuild their homes and lives, and live up to the full potential of their aspirations beyond life in displacement camps. A return to Ngarannam signifies hope for many who are displaced by circumstances beyond their control,” UNDP said.

The UN agency added that the emotionally moving documentary and an immersive virtual reality film aims to help viewers experience life in a camp for people who have been displaced and to watch the incredible transformation of their village.

Borno State Governor, Professor Babagana Zulum, who expressed delight at the general effects of the collaboration, said: “Borno has gone through a lot of internal and external turmoil over the last decade. The only way to prevent the next generation from joining the extremists is to make sure that many villages are stabilized, allowing people to return and use their agricultural lands, which will allow them to earn their living. 

“That is why, I’m glad UNDP has joined hands with us in giving the next generation renewed hope, and by helping us to reach others to continue to support more work like this.” 

The Resident Representative for UNDP Nigeria, Mohamed Yahya said: “Ngarannam offers us an opportunity to rethink our work and how we can leverage Nigerian talent and homegrown ideas to address the challenges of displacement and other  development issues. “Through this film, we are telling a powerful story of people who are normally not visible in a dignified manner. Ngarannam: The Homecoming is about people who are rising above their circumstances and willing to collectively be part of a journey that shifts the trajectory of their future –  it is the unbeatable power of people when they are part of something that is meaningful.”

He said the architectural designs created by Nigerian architect, Tosin Oshinowo includes 864 new homes, a school, a hospital, a police outpost to keep the village secure, and a marketplace to provide ways for the returning families to make a living. “This is the first time a project of this scale will be tried in the African region.”

Yahya thanked the Borno State government and other partners for their unwavering support, saying, “without the generosity of our donors we would not have been able to undertake the rebuilding a community of this scale and significance in such a short time. 

“The story of Ngarannam as depicted in the film gives people hope that they too can be part of solutions that prioritizes their needs and ambitions. We now have a proof of concept that provides us with the blueprint to scale up and replicate the same work in other affected regions,” he stated.

Joel ‘Kachi Benson, whose work has been featured in major film festivals around the world, who is known as the first Nigerian director to use virtual reality technology for storytelling, said: “The bulk of my work is actually around documenting conflicts and what I am drawn to is the resilience and the strength of the people and not the tragedy, Ngarannam: The Homecoming is a story of hope, family and home.”

One of the main characters of the film, Amina Modu, 19, said: “On the night we escaped, I wondered if I would ever walk along the fields I played in as a child and if  things would ever go back to the way they were. After living in a camp for almost a decade, I hope our story inspires others not to give up on their dreams of returning home some day.”