The United States has approved $32.5 million in humanitarian assistance to help address rising hunger in Nigeria.
In a statement released on Wednesday, the U.S. Mission to Nigeria said the funds will support food and nutrition programs targeting conflict-affected communities, particularly internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the country’s northeast and northwest.
The support comes amid warnings of a severe hunger crisis in northern Nigeria, fueled by insecurity and funding cuts. According to the World Food Programme (WFP), more than 1.3 million people risk being left without food, while as many as 150 nutrition clinics in Borno State could be forced to shut down.
In July, the WFP suspended food assistance across parts of West and Central Africa due to dwindling global aid, a move that left millions vulnerable as food stocks ran dangerously low.
The U.S. Mission explained that its latest intervention will reach over 764,000 Nigerians. This includes special nutrition support for more than 41,000 pregnant and breastfeeding women as well as over 43,000 children, delivered through electronic food vouchers.
Nigeria continues to grapple with multiple security crises that have worsened food shortages. Armed attacks in the northwest and north-central regions, often linked to clashes over land and water, have left hundreds dead in recent months. In June alone, at least 150 people were killed in a single attack in north-central Nigeria.
The country’s northeast has also endured more than a decade of insurgency, which the United Nations estimates has killed over 35,000 civilians and displaced more than two million others.
