The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, UNOCHA, is seeking the sum of $1 billion in 2017 to meet the needs of people affected by the crisis in the North east part of the country.
That amount is what is required to implement the 2017 Humanitarian Response Plan for Nigeria and address the needs of almost seven million people, especially in Borno, Adamawa and Yobe, the three most impacted states.
The Deputy Humanitarian Coordinator of OCHA in Nigeria, Peter Lundberg, announced this at a press statement on Friday in Abuja.
Lundberg said that almost seven million people are in dire need of nutrition, food, shelter, health, education, protection, water and sanitation, adding that a projected 5.1 million people would face serious food shortages as the conflict and risk of unexploded improvised devices prevented farmers from planting for a third year in a row.
He described the conflict in the North east as the largest in Africa, while calling on Nigerian Government and international community to step up efforts at funding the humanitarian needs of the affected population.
Lundberg said, “The narrative on this humanitarian crisis can no longer be ignored and we are appealing to the international community to help us prevent the deaths of thousands of innocent civilians over the coming 12 months.
“We welcome the full cooperation of the Government of Nigeria and the initiative behind the Inter-Ministerial Task Force to address the humanitarian situation.
This is the largest crisis on the African continent and I am confident that with the support of the international community and the private sector, we can begin to bring hope to the people of the north-east.”
According to him, during the course of 2016 as the Nigerian Armed Forces pushed into Boko Haram held areas, the scale of the human suffering became more apparent and the humanitarian community scaled up the response.
He said that 75 partners were ready to respond to those in needs at accessible areas in the implementation of the humanitarian response plan.