8.7 million people need immediate help in North-East ― UN

A delegation of the United Nations and international donors has said that 8.7 million people in the North-East need immediate assistance as insurgency continues to ravage the region.

The delegation also revealed that 3.2 million individuals were displaced by the insurgency in the region, with 4.4 million food-insecure people at crisis and emergency levels and millions of civilians subjected to extreme hardships.

According to the delegation, in the North-East zone alone, 13.1 million people live in areas affected by conflict, of whom 8.7 million are in dire need of immediate assistance.

The delegation, comprising officials of Canada, the European Union (EU), France, Germany, Norway, Switzerland, the United Kingdom (UK), the United States of America (USA), the World Bank Group and International Monetary Fund (IMF), visited Borno State on Wednesday.

The head of cooperation of EU Delegation to Nigeria and ECOWAS, Ms Cecile Tassin-Pelzer, said, “Today’s high-level visit to Borno State, including Banki, has been a great opportunity to reassert the EU and the international community support to the implementation of the Lake Chad Regional Stabilisation Strategy.”

Also, the US Ambassador to Nigeria, Ms Mary Beth Leonard, said, “We are grateful to our partners on the ground who directly implement programmes made possible through US humanitarian assistance totalling over $1.45 billion over the past six years. There is no substitute for seeing and hearing from local residents and displaced families who are finding ways to live under the most austere conditions.”

The UN resident humanitarian coordinator in Nigeria, Mr Edward Kallon said, “The mission today has shown the power in combining development and humanitarian efforts, and it is clear that we must accelerate these contributions and find innovative ways to end this decade-long conflict if we are to meet our global, national and state goals to build back stronger.”

The delegation visited key locations where they had an overview of the coordination and operational challenges relating to humanitarian and development programmes in the region.

The delegates also identified the development deficits in Borno, Adamawa and Yobe states and spotlighted humanitarian needs, particularly access to service delivery, security, and the rapidly escalating food crisis in the zone.

They discussed the worsening insecurity in the region and how the protracted conflict in Nigeria had affected the Lake Chad region, including the neighbouring countries of Cameroon, Niger and Chad in the last 10 years.

They said the security situation remains highly volatile with non-state armed groups (NSAGs) continuing to target communities as well as humanitarians, including in areas that were previously considered secure.

Governor of Borno State, Babagana Zulum explained to the delegation that the visit provided the state government with the opportunity to advocate for humanitarian and development efforts, and emphasise the protection of civilians in the context of a challenging and insecure operating environment and highlight operational efforts in restoring the dignity of conflict-impacted communities through a people-centred approach paired with durable solutions.

He said, “Here in the Lake Chad region, we face one of the most severe humanitarian emergencies in the world. The uncertainty arising from the conflict is hampering normal life making dependency on humanitarian assistance a necessity but an unwarranted norm.

“While we thank our committed international stakeholders for their strong partnership and generous contributions to the stabilisation of the North East, I urge for continued support from all partners to continue to join us, wholeheartedly, in taking bold steps to promote development in the region.”

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