Abuja: The United States has approved $32.5 million in humanitarian assistance to Nigeria to tackle growing hunger and malnutrition, offering a critical lifeline as the country battles an escalating food crisis compounded by insecurity, aid cuts, and climate disasters.
The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) confirmed that the funding will provide emergency food support for more than 764,000 displaced people in Nigeria’s northeast and northwest, regions most affected by the Boko Haram insurgency and armed banditry. The package includes electronic food vouchers and nutritional programs targeting over 41,000 pregnant and breastfeeding women, as well as more than 43,000 children.
The announcement follows repeated warnings from humanitarian agencies that up to 1.3 million Nigerians could face famine-like conditions if immediate interventions are not made. In Borno State alone, some 150 nutrition clinics are at risk of closure due to funding shortages, leaving malnourished children without life-saving treatment.
The crisis is aggravated by the global collapse in supplies of Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Food (RUTF), the primary treatment for severely malnourished children. According to aid groups, Nigeria, along with Kenya, Somalia, and South Sudan, could run out of the essential food within three months. Experts warn that up to 369,000 children may die this year if urgent supplies are not restored.
Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) recently reported a dramatic surge in malnutrition-related deaths in northern Nigeria. Between January and June 2025, at least 652 children died in Katsina State alone, with severe malnutrition cases rising by more than 200 percent compared to last year.
The funding crisis has also crippled maternal health services. Clinics in Maiduguri run by the United Nations and other aid groups are struggling to continue operations, placing expectant mothers and survivors of gender-based violence at extreme risk. Nigeria already records one of the world’s highest maternal mortality rates, with more than 75,000 women dying in childbirth in 2023.
Education has not been spared. A school in Maiduguri that once enrolled over 3,000 children has been forced to release 700 students and 20 teachers after USAID support was withdrawn. Teachers fear the setback could expose vulnerable youth to extremist recruitment.
The humanitarian emergency is further worsened by climate-related disasters. The 2025 flood season has devastated multiple states, with the Mokwa flood in Niger State alone killing more than 500 people, leaving 600 missing, and destroying over 4,000 homes. Across the country, farmlands, houses, and livelihoods have been wiped out, intensifying food insecurity for millions.
While the new U.S. funding signals renewed international attention, aid groups caution that the support remains insufficient against the scale of Nigeria’s humanitarian crisis. Relief agencies are urging global donors to step up funding and ensure the uninterrupted flow of therapeutic food and essential health services to prevent a further rise in child and maternal deaths.