Background
The violent conflict in the Lake Chad Basin has continuously deteriorated. Boko Haram raids and suicide bombings targeting civilians are causing widespread trauma, preventing people from accessing essential services and destroying vital infrastructure. Around 21 million people live in the affected areas across the four Lake Chad countries. The number of displaced people has tripled over the last two years. Most of the displaced families are sheltered by communities that count among the world’s poorest and most vulnerable. Food insecurity and malnutrition have reached critical levels.
Recent developments
Recurrent attacks by suspected Boko Haram elements and insecurity continue to hamper humanitarian access and endanger civilian safety across the Lake Chad Basin. Remote border areas remain insecure and some humanitarian operations have been temporarily suspended. In Chad, the authorities are undertaking measures to allow the safe delivery of humanitarian assistance in several localities in the western Lac region. In Niger, military operations by the Multi-National Joint Task Force and national army continue along the border with Nigeria and the Lake Chad islands. Suicide bombings and attacks are still being witnessed in north-eastern Nigeria and Cameroon’s Far North region.
Food insecurity and malnutrition remain high across the region. Around 1.5 million people in Cameroon’s Far North are facing food insecurity at crisis and emergency levels, according to the latest survey. A recent assessment in Chad’s Lac region showed global acute malnutrition rates at 12.2 per cent, and severe acute malnutrition at 2.1 per cent. In Diffa region in south-eastern Niger, a September assessment conducted outside camps showed that GAM declined to 13.8 per cent from 17.1 per cent at the beginning of the year.
Disclaimer
- UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
- To learn more about OCHA's activities, please visit https://www.unocha.org/.