$89m Lifeline Needed as 17 Million Nigerians Face Worsening Hunger Crisis — UN

The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) has appealed for $89 million to sustain emergency food and nutrition assistance for millions of vulnerable Nigerians, warning that escalating insecurity, shrinking humanitarian funding and limited access to affected communities are driving a worsening hunger crisis across northern Nigeria.

In a statement issued on Thursday, the UN food agency said the funding is needed over the next six months to continue delivering food assistance, nutritional support and critical humanitarian logistics across the region.

The agency warned that without urgent financial support, food insecurity is likely to worsen, increasing displacement and instability in conflict-affected communities.

According to the latest Cadre Harmonise food security analysis, more than 17 million people across nine northern states are currently experiencing crisis, emergency or catastrophic levels of food insecurity, an increase of nearly two million people compared to the previous assessment.

WFP said the situation is particularly dire in Borno State, where renewed insurgent attacks and cuts in humanitarian assistance have left more than three million people acutely food insecure.

Of that figure, more than 750,000 people are experiencing severe hunger, while over 10,000 people have fallen into catastrophic hunger conditions, the highest and most extreme level of food insecurity.

Although those facing catastrophic hunger represent a small proportion of the affected population, the agency said the figures reflect the growing impact of conflict, displacement and declining humanitarian support.

"What concerns us most is how this crisis is expanding," said Kinday Samba, WFP Regional Director for West and Central Africa.

"For years, insurgent attacks and violence were largely concentrated in parts of northeast Nigeria. Today, they are spreading across a much wider area and forcing people from farmland, driving displacement and restricting humanitarian access, meaning hunger is quick to follow."

The agency said humanitarian operations are becoming increasingly difficult as insecurity worsens.

According to WFP, the number of locations inaccessible to its frontline staff has doubled, with an additional 15 communities now classified as partially inaccessible.

It also said attacks along major transport routes and the proliferation of illegal checkpoints are disrupting the movement of humanitarian supplies, while air transport remains the only viable option for delivering aid to some hard-to-reach communities.

Despite rising needs, WFP said funding shortages have forced it to drastically reduce its operations.

While 6.2 million people are currently food insecure across the three North-east states, the agency said it has enough resources to assist only about 740,000 people, leaving roughly 5.5 million people, many of them children, without access to lifesaving food and nutrition support.

The organisation noted that this represents a sharp decline from the 1.3 million people it was able to support during the peak of the 2025 lean season.

WFP warned that the reduction in humanitarian assistance is forcing vulnerable households to adopt desperate survival strategies.

According to the agency, some communities have reported people joining armed groups in search of food or income, highlighting the growing security risks associated with worsening hunger.

The organisation also expressed concern that the suspension of food assistance in some displacement camps due to funding shortages has contributed to a rise in exploitation and gender-based violence, particularly affecting women and children.

"When people lose access to food, the risks of displacement, exploitation and instability increase. Yet resources are at their lowest at the time they are needed most," Samba said.