AfDB, WFP distribute #1.5billion food items to 88,236 people in Borno

The African Development Bank (AfDB) in collaboration with the World Food Programme (WFP) have distributed $1 million (N1.5 billion) worth of food items to 88, 236 individuals affected as a result of last year’s floods in Borno State.

According to the agency, 17,236 households comprising 88,180 individuals were affected in the last September floods that devastated Maiduguri and its environs.

Speaking during the distributing the flood-relief materials on Thursday in Maiduguri, David Stevenson the WFP Country Director in Nigeria, said the $1 million contribution is from its Special Fund to support emergency food response for flood-affected communities in the Northeast.

“Our support comes at a critical time, when humanitarian funding is in short supply and the country faces alarmingly high rates of food insecurity,” attributing it to the fuelling of conflict, floods, and poverty in the region.

He added, “Today, we were out in Ngala on the Cameroonian border. We flew out in the helicopter. We saw the displacement. We were part of a distribution out there. We discussed co-donors, the private sector, and the public sector to help with humanitarian food systems solutions.

He further stated “So this is a really important contribution, but the message is, we’re not just saving lives. We’re working to change lives to help with humanitarian food system solutions,” he noted.

He lamented that communities that started rebuilding their lives were, however, struck by floods again, displacing about 1.5 million residents of Maiduguri. He noted that the recent floods had compounded years of prior displacements, food insecurity, and hardship, with disastrous consequences by pushing hunger levels much higher.

Stevenson continued, “The Cade Harmonise analysis, conducted twice a year in 26 states and the federal capital, Abuja, projects that 33 million people would be food insecure in August 2025.

He said that each of the affected households collected a customised ATM card valued at N100,000.

Abdul Kamara, the AfDB Director General in Nigeria, also said: “This additional funding will mitigate the suffering of vulnerable people on the brink of acute hunger,” stating that this is at a time when more people need humanitarian assistance.

“I commend the federal government and WFP’s humanitarian food systems solution in Borno State. At Africa Development Bank. We are on the development side. As most of you would know, we are doing infrastructure. We have been providing roads, power, water and sanitation.” he disclosed.

He said that the new contribution complements the bank’s ongoing effort to restructure activities of the program for Integrated Agricultural Development Adaptation (IADA) to climate change and basic service delivery and livelihood empowerment in Borno, Adamawa, and Yobe states.