ABUJA, Federal Republic of Nigeria. With humanitarian services at a low in the North East part of Nigeria, UNICEF said about $26.5m is needed to cater for IDPs in various camps scattered across the region.
This came as UNICEF Head of Education, Judith Giwa-Amu said there are dire consequences on the educational system as insurgents attempt to fight back.
UNICEF Head of Monitoring and Evaluation, Soji Adeniyi said the situation is worsening by the day given the shortage of funds to provide emergency services in many camps in the zone.
According to Adeniyi, “The funding that we are expecting, $26.5 million, is not coming. So, we’ve not been able to meet our target.
“This has affected a lot of programme implementation like child nutrition, immunization and other healthcare services,” he said.
Adeniyi explained that out of the $26.5m, the organization has only received $8 million.”
UNICEF said as a result of this gap, the zone has become a predominantly malnutrition belt.
Adeniyi noted that currently “above 20 per cent of the children’s population are malnourished in states stretching from Sokoto to Kebbi, Adamawa, Gombe, Bauchi, Borno and Yobe States. Every year, we lose about 1,500 people to cholera,” he remarked.
Credit: ThisDay
