By Omoniyi David
The Minister of State for Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Tanko Sununu, has warned that over 300,000 children in Nigeria’s north-east face severe malnutrition following the suspension of food aid by the United Nations’ World Food Programme (WFP).
Speaking in Abuja on Monday at the inauguration of the House of Representatives ad hoc committee on flood management, Sununu said the WFP halt, which took effect “a few days ago,” has already disrupted treatment for children.
WFP had earlier cautioned in July that over 1.3 million people could be affected if its emergency food and nutrition assistance stopped. More than 150 WFP-supported nutrition centres in Borno and Yobe States have now shut down, ending support for children under two years old.
“Just a few days ago, the World Food Programme suspended some of its activities, which had supported more than 1.2 million Nigerians with emergency transfers in the north-east.
“This leaves over 300,000 children at risk of malnutrition, while more than 200,000 are already receiving treatment,” the minister said.
He noted that poverty remains most prevalent in the northern region, which accounts for 65 percent of Nigeria’s poor population.
Over 70 percent of these are smallholder farmers whose farmlands have been destroyed by floods and droughts.
To mitigate the impact, Sununu said the federal government is scaling up interventions through the National Social Investment Programme (NSIP).
He disclosed that under the Government Enterprise and Empowerment Programme (GEEP), farmers have received interest-free loans of N300,000 each, while conditional cash transfers worth N419 billion have reached 5.9 million households, benefiting about 25 million Nigerians.
“These efforts are part of President Bola Tinubu’s commitment to ensuring Nigerians maintain dignity of life despite economic challenges,” Sununu said, assuring that the government, with support from the National Assembly, will continue to protect vulnerable families and restore livelihoods.
