The United Nations has announced a $6 million donation to support victims of recent flooding in Maiduguri, Borno State, after an overflow of the Alau Dam devastated communities.
The flood has displaced thousands of people, many of whom had already been uprooted by ongoing conflict and insecurity in the region.
Mohammed Fall, the UN Humanitarian Coordinator in Nigeria, revealed the donation in a statement on Tuesday.
Fall noted that a joint mission comprising UN agencies, NGOs, and the Nigeria Red Cross Society visited Maiduguri over the weekend to assess the situation and provide relief.
“We and our partners are providing them with hot meals, we are facilitating air drops of food in hard-to-reach areas cut off by floodwaters, and we are also trucking in water,” Fall said.
“We are also providing water and sanitation hygiene services and water purification tablets to stem disease outbreaks. This is in addition to supplying hygiene and dignity kits to women and girls, as well as emergency health and shelter services.”
The flooding, caused by the overflow of the Alau Dam—just 10 miles south of Maiduguri—has severely impacted the region, destroying over 125,000 hectares of farmland across Nigeria.
As efforts continue, the UN’s Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) is working closely with donors to secure further funding to address the ongoing crisis.
