ABUJA, NIGERIA — The United Nations and its humanitarian partners have issued a catastrophic warning for the Lake Chad Basin, as the 2026 Humanitarian Needs and Response Plan (HNRP) for northeast Nigeria hits a financial wall. Despite an urgent appeal for $516.4 million, the plan is currently only 32 percent funded, leaving a staggering $347.5 million shortfall.
This resource drought arrives at the worst possible moment for the Borno, Adamawa, and Yobe (BAY) states, which are bracing for a hunger crisis of historic proportions.
WFP: One Million People at Risk of Aid Cut-Off
The World Food Programme (WFP) has cautioned that its emergency reserves could be completely exhausted by March 2026.
- The Scale of Need: Nearly 5.8 million people in the northeast are projected to face acute food insecurity this year.
- The Impact of Cuts: Without an immediate cash injection, over one million people risk being severed from life-saving food distributions. WFP has already been forced to scale back its reach to just 72,000 beneficiaries in certain frontline areas—a fraction of the 1.3 million reached during the 2025 lean season.
UNICEF: 75 Children Facing Death Daily
UNICEF has joined the alarm, warning that the funding gap directly threatens nutrition interventions for the region’s most vulnerable.
- Severe Malnutrition: Approximately one million children in the BAY states are projected to suffer from life-threatening severe acute malnutrition in 2026.
- The Mortality Rate: Current estimates suggest that at least 75 children face death every single day in the northeast if they do not receive urgent therapeutic care during the upcoming peak malnutrition months.
A Converging National Crisis
The humanitarian coordinator for Nigeria, Mohamed Malick Fall, noted that 16 years of conflict, compounded by climate shocks and economic hardship, have pushed the region to its limit.
This funding crisis mirrors a broader national breakdown. As Bauchi Governor Bala Mohammed pleads for federal help against 10,000 armed bandits in Alkaleri, and Buba Galadima exposes the “selective justice” within the Abuja regency, the most vulnerable are left to starve. While the administration manages a $9 million U.S. lobbying fund to polish its image abroad, the reality on the ground in the northeast is one of life-or-death austerity.
