AGS NEWS – The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has announced that $4.7 billion is needed in 2024 to aid 20.9 million vulnerable people in Nigeria, Chad, and five other African countries.

This was revealed in the 2024 Humanitarian Needs and Requirement Overview report published on Thursday.

The Sahel region, which includes Nigeria, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, and Senegal, faces a complex web of crises, including instability, deteriorating security, and climate change effects, impacting 32.8 million people.

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OCHA has urged the international community to contribute generously to ensure the humanitarian response plans are fully implemented by the end of the year.

The UN agency highlighted that increasing violence and conflict in the Sahel are displacing families and hindering access to basic services.

In Nigeria’s Borno, Adamawa, and Yobe states, 7.9 million people are in need, with the UN targeting 4.4 million of them, requiring $926.5 million.

The report noted severe impacts such as 2.2 million children out of school, 1,263 health centers closed, and the region hosting two million refugees and asylum seekers, alongside 5.6 million internally displaced persons, many of whom have been displaced multiple times.

OCHA emphasized the urgent need for $4.7 billion to assist vulnerable populations in Burkina Faso, Cameroon’s Far North Region, Chad, Mali, Niger, and Nigeria. Without necessary resources, humanitarian efforts could falter, putting lives at risk.

As of April 30, 2024, Burkina Faso and Nigeria have over 2.1 million internally displaced persons each. Chad hosts the highest number of refugees and asylum seekers, with 1.2 million.

The conflict in Sudan has also driven over half a million Sudanese to seek refuge in Chad, with numbers expected to rise if the situation doesn’t stabilize.

Charles Bernimolin, OCHA’s regional head, highlighted the critical role of humanitarian work and international partnerships during crises but acknowledged the challenge of insufficient resources.

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He expressed confidence in international partners’ ability to help and stressed the need for long-term solutions to reduce future humanitarian needs.

In 2023, humanitarian partners provided assistance to over 15.6 million people across the Sahel, but funding shortages left many without aid.

As of June 3, 2024, only 16% of the required funding for 2024 country response plans had been met, threatening millions of lives if aid operations collapse.