The United Nations Office at Geneva
Multimedia Newsroom
Nigeria: crisis in north-east will get worse without urgent help, says OCHA
UN humanitarians issued an alert on Tuesday on the deteriorating situation for millions of mainly women and children in north-east Nigeria who continue to be affected by protracted armed conflict, just as the country enters the lean season.
Well over eight million people are in need of assistance in Borno, Adamawa and Yobe (BAY) states and an estimated 600,000 face emergency levels of food insecurity because of extremist violence centred around the Lake Chad region, that’s now in its 12th year.
Although previously dominant Boko Haram militia have been significantly weakened since the group’s leader was killed over a year ago, it continues to carry out indiscriminate attacks, said the UN’s top relief official in Nigeria, Matthias Schmale. Another extremist offshoot, ISWAP, is also dangerous, although it had also suffered setbacks, he noted.
As in previous years, a staggering one million people are also beyond the reach of international aid teams, said Mr. Schmale, who is the acting UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Nigeria. More than 80 per cent of those in need are women and children, who also face “abductions, rape and abuse”, while indiscriminate attacks in Borno state make it the most “unstable place to be”, he added.
“We’ve been asking to support out of the 8.4 million people in need of support at least 5.5 million,” Mr. Schmale told journalists in Geneva. “The conflict has left 2.2 million people presently displaced…We’ve just entered what is called the lean season that normally lasts ‘til September; last year it lasted ‘til November, so we’re also seeing the impact of climate change.”
Mr. Schmale noted that although Nigeria is a major oil producer, it lacks refineries which means that it has not benefited from the global surge in energy prices, linked to war in Ukraine.
“It’s early days yet in terms of understanding the full impact, as you may know, in Nigeria from the beginning there was speculation as to whether Nigeria would benefit as an oil-producing country. We’re not seeing that in fact at all, because Nigeria, as contradictory as this may sound, depends very largely on imports of refined oil so, the price rises we’ve seen are not benefiting Nigeria, that’s one concern.”
In time, the massive country could feed itself and avoid ever costlier food imports, the UN official insisted, although for the moment, it lacks the infrastructure and agricultural investment required to be competitive at a global level.
Of particular concern are the 1.74 million children under five who are expected to be suffer from acute malnutrition in the north-east in coming months.
“A key message is ringing the alarm bell,” Mr. Schmale said. “If we don’t get immediate funding soon for an initial multisector response plan worth $350 million, we will have a crisis that will be much worse in a couple of months.”
He added: “We hope that the international community realises that you ignore a situation like in the north-east of Nigeria at your own peril; it could have far-reaching consequences beyond the borders of Nigeria if we’re not able to keep it stable.”
ends
STORY: Nigeria Humanitarian Emergency - OCHA
TRT: 2 mins 15s
SOURCE: UNTV CH
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH
ASPECT RATIO: 16:9
DATELINE: 21 June 2022 GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
SHOTLIST
- Exterior wide shot, flag alley, UN Geneva.
- Medium shot, UN Geneva Press room.
- SOUNDBITE (ENGLISH): Matthias Schmale, UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Nigeria, Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA): “A key message is ringing the alarm bell. And what I mean by that is if we don’t get immediate funding soon for an initial multisector response plan worth $350 million, we will have a crisis that will be much worse in a couple of months.”
- Medium shot, participant, seated, in front of large TV screen showing Mr. Schmale.
- SOUNDBITE (ENGLISH): Matthias Schmale, UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Nigeria, Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA): “There are 600,000 people projected to be at emergency risk level in terms of food insecurity.”
- Medium shot, podium speakers, journalists.
- SOUNDBITE (ENGLISH): Matthias Schmale, UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Nigeria, Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA): “Now this is all happening in the context of a protracted crisis caused by a non-international armed conflict as many of you will know across the three states in the north-east in Nigeria: Borno, Adamawa and Yobe states.”
- Medium shot, journalists writing on notepad or laptop in foreground, participant to rear.
- SOUNDBITE (ENGLISH): Matthias Schmale, UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Nigeria, Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA): “We’ve been asking to support out of the 8.4 million people in need of support at least 5.5 million. The conflict has left 2.2 million people presently displaced.”
- Medium shot, participant in foreground, podium speakers to rear.
- SOUNDBITE (ENGLISH): Matthias Schmale, UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Nigeria, Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA): “We’ve just entered what is called the lean season that normally lasts ‘til September; last year it lasted ‘til November, so we’re also seeing the impact of climate change.”
- Medium shot, journalist in foreground, podium speakers to rear.
- SOUNDBITE (ENGLISH): Matthias Schmale, UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Nigeria, Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA): “It’s early days yet in terms of understanding the full impact, as you may know, in Nigeria from the beginning there was speculation as to whether Nigeria would benefit as an oil-producing country. We’re not seeing that in fact at all, because Nigeria, as contradictory as this may sound, depends very largely on imports of refined oil so, the price rises we’ve seen are not benefiting Nigeria, that’s one concern.”
- Wide shot, journalists, TV camera on tripod, lighting panel on stand.
- Close-up, podium speakers seated in front of UN Geneva backdrop.
- Medium shot, journalists, UN staff.
Similar Stories
1
1
1
Edited News | WHO , UNICEF
Yemen violence fuels deepening concerns over hunger crisis among children
Aid agencies in Yemen highlighted the growing hunger crisis linked to the ongoing escalation between advancing Houthi rebels and Government forces, after mobile health clinics found hundreds of children displaced by the violence suffering from the deadliest form of malnutrition.
1
1
1
Press Conferences | WIPO , WHO , UNICEF , UNHCR , IOM , WFP , FAO
WIPO Global Innovation Index 2026 launch and press conference, WHO Composition of influenza vaccines for the 2027 Southern Hemisphere flu season, UNICEF Yemen hunger and malnutrition; UNHCR Sudan displacement into Chad; IOM Ebola and population movements in DRC; WFP emergency food assistance in Nepal; and FAO food loss and waste.
2
1
2
Press Conferences | UNCTAD
Gaza reconstruction needs reach $71.5 billion as Palestinian economy and public finances face severe strain. Latest UNCTAD report documents the loss of decades of development gains, economic collapse in Gaza and tightening economic constraints in the West Bank.
The report identifies three immediate priorities: transferring withheld Palestinian revenues, safeguarding the banking system and aligning reconstruction support with the documented scale of damage and economic losses.
1
1
1
Press Conferences | HRC
Press conference on the situation of human rights in Nicaragua by the UN Group of Human Rights Experts
1
1
1
Edited News | UNHCR
Displacement on the rise in Yemen as fighting continues - UNHCR
As hostilities worsen in Yemen, more people have been fleeing their homes, further intensifying the humanitarian crisis within the region, the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) warned on Tuesday.
1
1
1
Press Conferences | ITU , UNHCR , WHO , WMO
YEMEN - UNHCR: Escalating conflict in Yemen could fuel more displacement, refugee movement
CLIMATE - WHO / WMO: Health and Climate impact of El Niño
1
1
1
Press Conferences | HRC , OHCHR
Mariana Katzarova discusses human rights in Russia as a UN Special Rapporteur.
1
1
1
Edited News | IOM , OHCHR , UNFPA , UNOG , UNHCR , WHO
Yemen’s humanitarian crisis growing by the hour amid spike in displacement
Yemenis displaced by renewed fighting have described fleeing for their lives amid shelling and gunfire, aid agencies reported on Friday, while highlighting the dramatic increase in humanitarian needs in the country and in Djibouti, where thousands have sought shelter.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
The UN Human Rights Office issued on Friday a report documenting a shocking pattern of sexual violence amid Russia’s full-scale armed attack on Ukraine.
1
1
1
Press Conferences | IOM , OHCHR , UN WOMEN , UNFPA , UNHCR , UNOPS , WHO
UN Geneva briefing: Yemen crisis worsens, urgent aid needed across multiple sectors.
1
1
1
Press Conferences | HRC
Press conference on the latest report of the Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela to the UN Human Rights Council
1
1
1
Press Conferences | OHCHR
Victims Still Waiting: A Global Briefing on Transitional Justice Around the World