The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has raised alarm over an impending humanitarian crisis in Nigeria following a severe funding shortfall. The agency revealed it has received only $95 million of the $255 million required in 2025, leaving a $160 million (₦240bn) deficit threatening vital health, nutrition, education, and water projects.
Speaking in Maiduguri during the 2025 World Humanitarian Day commemoration, UNICEF’s Chief of Maiduguri Field Office, Francis Butichi, said global aid cuts are deeply affecting vulnerable Nigerian communities already facing floods, displacement, conflict, and disease outbreaks.
Despite constraints, UNICEF reported progress: over 1.3 million people accessed health services, 340,000 children were treated for severe malnutrition, 185,000 gained access to clean water, and 500,000 displaced children were enrolled in schools. Butichi urged governments, donors, and the private sector to step up support for frontline humanitarian efforts.
Northern states are also responding. Gombe, Kebbi, and Sokoto governments confirmed budgetary provisions and counterpart funding to sustain UNICEF-backed projects. However, Jigawa officials admitted that the funding crisis could disrupt critical services like immunisation, nutrition, and safe water access.
UNICEF stressed that life-saving interventions for conflict-hit and flood-prone communities “must not stop.”
