Boko Haram: UN fact-finding mission to Nigeria visits Osinbajo tomorrow

The Security Council Visiting Mission to the Lake Chad Basin Region will arrive Nigeria today [Sunday] with a visit to Maiduguri, Borno and proceed to Abuja to meet with the acting President Yemi Osinbajo, on Monday.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reported that the delegation will meet North-East stakeholders in Maiduguri on Sunday before proceeding to Abuja where members will meet with Osinbajo and other stakeholders on Monday.

Spokesperson and Head of Communications, UK Mission to the UN, Matt Moody,  said: “On Day 5 of the UK Presidency, the Security Council will transfer to Maiduguri, Nigeria, where they will meet local officials and civil society organisations before visiting an IDP camp. In the evening, the Council will transfer to Abuja

“On Day 6 of the UK Presidency (Monday), the Security Council will meet Civil Society Organisations, Women’s Groups, and leaders of the Nigerian Government in Abuja.”

NAN reported that the visit is part of the UN Security Council’s mission under the UK Presidency, to the areas devastated by Boko Haram terrorists in the countries of the Lake Chad Basin – Nigeria, Cameroon, Chad and Niger.

The mission to Nigeria is aimed at enabling the UN body to get first-hand information on the various issues affecting the country.

This will be the first time the UN Security Council is visiting Nigeria.

With the ongoing crisis in the North East and other challenges faced by the country, the delegation will use the mission to engage with Federal and State authorities.

The Council will also engage actors on the ground supporting national response efforts and visit selected affected populations.

The delegation will have engagement with journalists in Maiduguri at 5 p.m. on Sunday and Abuja at 7 p.m. on Monday.

The delegation, led by Amb. Matthew Rycroft, UK Permanent Representative to the UN and the Security Council’s President for the month of March, had earlier visited Cameroon, Chad and will leave to Niger on Saturday night.

“First of all, we came here in order to shine a spotlight on the situation in the Lake Chad Basin.

“We came to hear the individual stories of people involved, whether they are refugees or displaced people or other victims of Boko Haram.

“We stand with the government and the people of Cameroon, and the wider region, in tackling the scourge of terrorism.

“And in encouraging them to look broadly and deeply at the root causes of the set of crises going on here.

“Whether humanitarian, to do with development, to do with education, agriculture and so on,” Rycroft said on Friday in Cameroon.

NAN reported that the UN says no fewer than 4.8 million people are now in urgent need of food assistance and 5.1 million are predicted to be food insecure if not supported by the humanitarian community in 2017.

The UN said that an estimated 300,000 children in Borno alone will suffer from severe acute malnutrition over the next 12 months and up to 450,000 in total across Adamawa, Borno and Yobe, if adequate assistance is not received.