The United Nations (UN) and the federal government of Nigeria have reaffirmed their joint commitment to addressing the country’s growing humanitarian crisis through strengthened collaboration and urgent action.

The pledge is contained in a joint communiqué signed on Wednesday in Abuja by the UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator, Mohmed Fall, and Nigeria’s Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction, Yusuf Sununu.

The statement was released to mark World Humanitarian Day 2025, in tribute to humanitarian workers who risk, and often lose, their lives delivering aid to those in need.

The communiqué highlighted the critical role of partnerships in humanitarian response, emphasising that deeper collaboration was vital in confronting poverty and worsening humanitarian conditions across the country.

“The federal government, the UN system, and humanitarian partners honour the memory of our colleagues, many of them national staff, who lost their lives helping people affected by conflict and disasters,” the statement read.

They jointly called for the global protection of humanitarian workers and civilians, urging full adherence to international humanitarian law.

They also emphasised the need to safeguard vulnerable groups, particularly women and girls, disproportionately impacted by conflict and displacement.

“Attacks on humanitarian workers and, more importantly, the people they seek to assist, must stop,” they said.

According to them, in spite of rising needs, the UN and the federal government lamented that humanitarian assistance is at its lowest point in years.

They cited the collapse of international funding and growing gaps in basic services for vulnerable populations as major concerns.

They stated, “In Nigeria specifically, humanitarian needs are worsening, with food insecurity and malnutrition reaching emergency levels. They warned that crucial lifelines, such as food and nutrition pipelines, have been severely disrupted, endangering millions, especially children under five. Key statistics from the communiqué include an estimated 31 million people face food insecurity in Nigeria. More than 10 million children under five are acutely malnourished.

“Also, 3.5 million children are malnourished, with 2.5 million concentrated in just six states. Approximately 400,000 children suffering from Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM) are at immediate risk of death without urgent intervention.’’

They stressed the need for a comprehensive reform of the humanitarian system, informed by six decades of experience and lessons from both local and international humanitarian actors.
(NAN)