N’East needs $250m to address looming food tragedy-UN
United Nations has raised the alarm that the North-East is on the brink of catastrophic food insecurity as 4.4 million people in the area are expected to face critical food shortage.
A statement on Thursday by the United States Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UN-OCHA) said, “In North-East Nigeria, the outlook is dire. Without sustained humanitarian assistance in Borno, Adamawa and Yobe states, millions will struggle to feed themselves during this critical 2021 lean season”.
The statement, relying on the March 2021 Cadre Harmonise food security assessment, lamented that 4.4 million people, including internally displaced people, were expected to face critical food shortages, adding that 775,000 people were at extreme risk of catastrophic food insecurity.
The statement quoted the UN Humanitarian Coordinator for Nigeria, Edward Kallon as saying, “The humanitarian community is deeply concerned by the alarming food insecurity in the North-East Nigeria. Levels of food insecurity today are similar to 2016-2017, when the crisis was at its worst. The UN and its non-governmental partners are working with the government to respond to this growing threat of catastrophic food insecurity.
“Women in affected communities have shared stories of sleepless children who cry through the night due to hunger”.
He lamented that conditions for some households are so desperate that families are living on nutritional supplements meant to ensure the survival of their children.
“The impact of Covid-19 pandemic and inflation has also deepened vulnerabilities”.
