By Chioma Umeha
Lagos – The United Nations has responded to the humanitarian in
crisis in the North-east Nigeria by allocating $13.4 million (about N4.8
billion) to the Nigeria Humanitarian Fund (NHF) to assuage the sufferings of
children, women and men in the region.
The fund is to address
devastation in the region by financing 20 projects in sectors of protection,
nutrition, water and sanitation, health, education, shelter and non-food items,
rapid response and early recovery, targeting a total of 950,000 people.
Mr. Edward Kallon,
Humanitarian Coordinator in Nigeria, said, “Humanitarian needs in north-east
Nigeria are still vast.”
“The United Nations and
our partners, in support of the Government of Nigeria, are committed to
assisting those in needs, especially in pivotal areas such as protection and
health,” he said.
The UN estimates the
north-east crisis is one of the most severe today, leaving 8.5 million people
in need of life-saving aids in 2017 in the worst-affected states – Borno,
Adamawa and Yobe.
The allocation will also
help directly fund local responders. In particular, it will be spent also to
expand and improve sexual and reproductive health services for nearly 130,000
women and adolescent girls in parts of Borno.
It would also pay for
improved nutrition to availability of safe water and sanitation to for 125,000
people.
NHF is one of 18 pool
funds launched at the Oslo Humanitarian Conference on Nigeria and the Lake Chad
Region in February 2017 and managed by the Oslo Humanitarian Conference on
Nigeria and the Lake Chad Region.
The NHF called for $1.05
billion for 2017 response plan, but has received only $714.7 million in
contributions by November, and targeted 6.9 million people in need of
humanitarian aid.
