The United Nations Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Nigeria, Mohammed Fall, says that about 5.9 million Nigerian children face severe food and nutrition crisis, the highest globally.
Nigeria’s declared a national emergency on food security on July 13, 2023, as record inflation made basic foods unaffordable for many.
Fall spoke at the launch of 2024 the Lean Season Food Security and Nutrition Crisis multi-sector plan.
He noted that the plan seeks to harmonise with existing government investments and actions in the areas of food assistance, health, water and sanitation, with the targets being North-Eastern states like Borno, Adamawa and Yobe.
He stressed that 700,000 children under five years, were alleged to be malnourished in the three states, even as 4.8 million Nigerians were at risk of food crisis in this year’s lean season (June to September), which was further worsened by flooding, inflation, as well as the war in Ukraine which had made access to food more difficult.
He further said that N306 million targeting 2.8 million people, was needed to carry out this year’s project, to prevent a food and nutrition crisis in the region from deteriorating into a catastrophic situation.
