Attachments
1. Introduction
1.1 About the North-West Operational Response Plan 2025-2026
Although humanitarian needs in North-West Nigeria remain severe and protracted, the region is not included in the Nigeria Humanitarian Needs and Response Plan (HNRP). Armed conflict, widespread displacement, food insecurity, protection risks, and limited access to basic services continue to drive a complex crisis in the region. In response, the North-West Operational Response Plan (ORP) was launched in 2023 to deliver a coordinated, multisectoral humanitarian response tailored to the specific needs of the region.
This updated ORP (August 2025–July 2026) presents a unified strategy that integrates humanitarian, development and peace interventions under government leadership, with strong collaboration from United Nations (UN) agencies, International Non-Government Organizations (INGOs), local Non-Government Organizations (NGOs), and community-based organizations (CBOs). It emphasizes inclusive, accountable, and conflict-sensitive service delivery, ensuring that the dignity, rights, and safety of affected populations remain central.
The ORP builds on the lessons and achievements of its first cycle. It aims to expand life-saving assistance and protection to the most vulnerable people in the three most affected states: Katsina, Sokoto, and Zamfara. The plan also strengthens the Humanitarian-Development-Peace (HDP) nexus in the 7 North–West States - Jigawa, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi, Sokoto, and Zamfara, by promoting early recovery, resilience-building, and sustainable solutions to reduce long-term vulnerabilities.
In alignment with the UN-led Humanitarian Reset, the 2025-2026 ORP adopts a pragmatic and locally grounded approach to humanitarian action—one that reflects the sharp decline in available funding. Recognizing that the traditional Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC) humanitarian architecture as seen in the North-East will not be replicated in the North-West, the ORP embraces the Reset’s emphasis on efficiency, prioritization, and localization. It focuses on empowering local actors, streamlining coordination through NGO-led and government-aligned mechanisms, and concentrating scarce resources on lifesaving and protection-driven responses. Rather than building parallel systems, the plan aims to strengthen existing local capacities, foster community ownership, and promote coherence with development and peace efforts. In doing so, the ORP exemplifies a Reset-informed model of humanitarian action—leaner, more responsive, and tailored to the realities of protracted crisis and structural neglect in the region.