The United Nations has said the world should be prepared for a significant rise in conflict, hunger and destitution in the North-East Nigeria.
Edward Kallon, the UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Nigeria, said this during his opening remarks at an online briefing on the humanitarian situation in the North-East.
Kallon said an estimated 4.3 million people are now facing food insecurity at crisis or emergency levels.
Increased food insecurity will lead to higher levels of malnutrition, he said.
He also said that the number of distressed people at 10.6 million in 2020 was the highest in five years, and called for an urgent attention from the government and other stakeholders.
“Nigeria today, and particularly the conflict-affected states of Borno, Adamawa and Yobe – the so-called BAY states, are facing unprecedented challenges,” Kallon said.
“A resurgence in violence continues to ravage entire communities eleven years into a protracted conflict. We are also facing extraordinary challenges from the COVID-19 pandemic – a global health crisis – that no country was adequately prepared for.”
” At least 10.6 million people need our assistance to survive. This is roughly the population of Belgium and twice the population of Norway.”
The UN official further disclosed that the outbreak of the Coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19) disease has caused insufferable shocks in the region.
“The steep rise in prices, as well as movement restrictions, due to the COVID-19 pandemic have caused insufferable shocks. An estimated 4.3 million people are now facing food insecurity at crisis or emergency levels. Increased food insecurity will lead to higher levels of malnutrition.”
“Without immediate support, one out of five malnourished children could die without treatment. Children and women, in particular, are bearing the brunt of the COVID-19 pandemic. Prevention measures, such as lockdowns, physical distancing, and school closures are impeding education, jeopardizing the future of 4.2 million children. Protection concerns are paramount, and the risks of exploitation, domestic violence and abuse are higher than ever, for women, boys and girls.”
He further condemned the brutal attacks on aid workers and civilians.
“At the same time as we are fighting the pandemic, I have been shocked, saddened and outraged by the brutal attacks targeting civilians, including aid workers, in recent weeks. Incidents in which villages have been brutally attacked, houses and property set ablaze, and people burned alive.”
“Today, 1.9 million people remain internally displaced in the BAY states. Since the beginning of the year, nearly 60,000 people were forced to flee their homes, some for the second or third time. More than a third of these are sleeping out in the open.”
Nigeria in the last 11-years has been battling Boko Haram insurgency group in the northeast that has led to a major humanitarian crisis, with high levels of food insecurity, a cholera outbreak and large-scale displacement.
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