By Our Reporter
At least one million people in North-East Nigeria could lose access to emergency food and nutrition assistance within weeks unless urgent funding is secured, the World Food Programme (WFP) has warned.
The global food agency said Nigeria is experiencing one of its worst hunger crises in recent years, driven by renewed violence, displacement, and the destruction of food supplies across rural communities in the north.
According to the WFP, nearly 35 million Nigerians are projected to face acute and severe food insecurity during the upcoming lean season. This includes about 15,000 people in Borno State who are at risk of slipping into catastrophic hunger, one step away from famine.
WFP Nigeria Country Director, David Stevenson, warned that a halt in food assistance would have dire humanitarian and security consequences.
“If WFP cannot continue supporting displaced populations in camps, they will leave in a desperate attempt to survive. They may migrate elsewhere or join insurgent groups to feed themselves and their families,” he said.
Stevenson stressed that withdrawing food aid at this time could trigger mass displacement and worsen instability in the region, noting that humanitarian assistance remains one of the last stabilising forces in conflict-affected areas.
The agency described the situation as the worst hunger levels recorded in Nigeria in a decade and said it urgently requires $129 million to sustain its life-saving operations in the North-East over the next six months.
Without immediate funding, the WFP warned that its operations in the region could be forced to shut down.
(NAN)