TheCable

The OPEC Fund for International Development (OFID) has approved an emergency assistance grant for humanitarian food and nutrition assistance operations in famine-stricken areas in north-east Nigeria.

A statement released by the organisation said that the grant, which will support the operations of World Food Programme (WFP), will target over two million people in areas affected by the Boko Haram crisis.

“This latest initiative will target over two million people in the worse-affected areas—Borno and Yobe states—including population pockets where humanitarian assistance has not yet reached.

“The ongoing unrest in northeast Nigeria has caused critical levels of food insecurity and malnutrition and as a result, some 4.6 million people are going hungry. An estimated two million people are in urgent need of assistance, and over one-half of children under the age of five are suffering from moderate to acute malnutrition.

“Activities will include providing food, and where markets are functioning, cash-based assistance and distributing specialized nutrient-rich food for children under the age of five.”

The WFP said that it will focus on low-income families, helping them with money to buy nutritious food to prevent any relapse after their children must have been treated for malnutrition.

In August, a survey conducted by Philips Consulting reported that more than 93 million Nigerians were battling food insecurity.

The survey results showed that food was the highest household expenditure by more than half of the respondents.

In October, WFP donated food to Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) residing in the Gwoza camp.