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Prevailing insecurity still a challenge to humanitarian access in Lake Chad Basin

Countries
Nigeria
+ 3 more
Sources
OCHA
Publication date

Regional Highlights

  • More than 4,500 people are displaced by Boko Haram attacks in Nigeria’s Chibok locality in Borno state.

  • Military operations displaced almost 15,000 people between 27 January and 10 February in the northeast of Nigeria.

  • WFP is scaling up assistance through cash transfers and voucher distributions to provide affected communities in Chad with sustainable solutions.

  • Rising inflation in Nigeria is pushing up prices of local and imported staples. Vulnerable households in the Lake Chad region will be worst affected.

  • Access continues to open in more remote areas of Cameroon’s Far North region, but insecurity remains a challenge.

  • Fourteen donor countries on 24 February pledge US$458 million to assist 11 million people affected by conflict across the Lake Chad Basin region this year. An additional $214 million is announced for 2018 and beyond at the end of a two-day conference on Nigeria and the Lake Chad region held in Oslo.

  • Also at the conference, UN Emergency Relief Coordinator, Stephen O’Brien, launches the Nigeria Humanitarian Fund to enable donors pool contributions to deliver a more effective, collective and immediate response in the country’s north-east.

  • On 2 March, the Governments of Cameroon and Nigeria together with UNHCR sign a tripartite agreement on the voluntary repatriation of Nigerian refugees in Cameroon. The agreement sets out the modalities for the voluntary return of refugees to their country of origin in safety and dignity.

Situation overview

  • A wave of armed attacks in February has triggered new displacements of civilians in areas that have recently opened up in Nigeria’s north-eastern Borno state, where military operations have also forced people to flee for safety elsewhere. Return movements have also been observed in Borno, especially in localities that have recently become accessible.

  • Prevailing insecurity remains a hindrance to humanitarian access in the conflict-hit areas of the region, although several localities in north-eastern Nigeria and in Cameroon’s Far North region are gradually becoming accessible. In Niger’s south-east, three attacks were reported in February compared to nine the previous month.

  • The humanitarian situation remains dire across all the areas affected by the ongoing conflict. In Chad’s western Bol locality, for instance, food and basic household items are the main needs, according to a recent assessment. In Niger’s south-eastern Diffa region, one out of three people is in need of humanitarian assistance.

UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs: To learn more about OCHA's activities, please visit https://www.unocha.org/.