The Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) of the United Nations has sought for $40 million assistance to rescue locals in Nigeria's Northeast from acute hunger and starvation.
This was even as the intervention would be used to provide critical production inputs to 2.3 million people in Borno, Adamawa and Yobe known as the BAY States during the 2023 lean season.
The production inputs, which include fast maturing seed varieties, fertiliser and livestock feeds, are expected to boost their source of livelihoods at the peak of the lean season between June to August,
Country Representative of FAO, Fred Kafeero stated this at the launch of Lean Season Food Security and Nutrition Crisis, Multi-sector Plan 2023, in Abuja recently.
He noted that the number of food insecure people in the northeast had remained constant since 2020, adding that timeliness is a critical factor in food production.
Kafeero requested for more assistance towards scaling up interventions that are aimed at boosting local food production and income for the affected populations.
The UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Nigeria, Matthias Schmale, solicited the support of donor agencies to urgently rescue vulnerable people in the Northeast from hunger and malnutrition.
Schmale lamented that years of protracted conflict and insecurity had obstructed people from producing food, hence, the need for the victims to receive a survival strategy and earn income for food purchase.
Head of UN Office of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) Trond Jensen, hinted that the March 2023 Cadre Harmonise (CH) projected that 4.3 million people in the BAY states, were at risk of severe hunger.
He noted that hunger would worsen between June and August, 2023, saying that more than half a million of the population in the affected states would face high food insecurity, acute malnutrition and mortality, except by scaling up humanitarian assistance.
“Approximately, two million children under five years of age, across the three states will be acutely malnourished in 2023, and this will put them at a greater risk of dying from common infections, causing developmental stagnation,’’ he added.
He informed that the 2023 Humanitarian Response Plan (HRP) required $1.3 billion to support six million people, as $396.1 million is urgently needed to deliver lifesaving food security and nutrition assistance to 2.8 million persons in the region.
The Director, Irrigation Agriculture and Crop Development, Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (FMARD) Mrs sugra Mahamood noted that food security analysis provided valuable insights on the need for immediate and coordinated action.
Mahamood said that the people of Borno, Adamawa, and Yobe states had endured immense hardships due to conflicts, displacement and climate-related challenges.
She reiterated the commitment of the Federal Government and donor agencies in mobilising funds that would provide nutritious food to meet their basic needs.
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