$1 billion required to assist millions affected by Boko-Haram linked violence, UN

Financial support of about $1 billion is needed to assist millions of people who have been affected by the devastation caused by the Boko-Haram linked violence.

“If the resources do not arrive in time, one in five children suffering severe acute malnutrition could die,” said Peter Lundberg, the Deputy Humanitarian Coordinator for Nigeria in a press release issued recently by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

“The likelihood of a child with severe acute malnutrition surviving is nine times less than a properly nourished child,” he added.

“Food assistance alone will cost $1 million a day to avoid famine in a region where 450,000 children under five will suffer from severe acute malnutrition this year. Sustained and timely financial support is needed to maintain the scale-up in operations desperately needed in the north-east of Nigeria. We are grateful to our donors who have enabled us scale up the response and appreciate their continued commitment. We look forward to receiving the needed resources to implement the 2017 Humanitarian Response Plan for Nigeria,” Lundberg said.