DAILY RENDEZVOUS

Daily Rendezvous   - 339 Million People Will Need Humanitarian Assistance in 2023 - US$51.5 Billion Needed to Save 230 million Vulnerable People   - Northeast Nigeria, Burkina Faso Could Slip into Famine if Conditions Get Worst -.  In 2023, millions of vulnerable people in Nigeria and beyond will continue to face a daily struggle to survive. Violent conflict, the climate crisis, disease, and other risks, according to the just launched Global Humanitarian Overview (GHO) are putting their lives at risk.  The  GHO provides an annual assessment of global humanitarian needs and how best to respond to them. In 2023, 339 million people across the world will need humanitarian assistance - an increase of nearly 24 per cent from last year.  According to the GHO some US$51.5 billion - 25 per cent more than in 2022  -  is needed to assist the most vulnerable -  230 million people - in 69 countries, including in Nigeria. Humanitari...

Daily Rendezvous  $10 MILLION CERF ALLOCATION TO SUPPORT LIFE-SAVING NUTRITION RESPONSE IN NORTH-EAST NIGERIA As the people of north-east Nigeria struggle to endure a devastating food and nutrition crisis, the Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) has released a US$10 million allocation to help save lives and get urgent aid to those who need it most.   Approximately 1.74 million children under the age of five are expected to suffer from acute malnutrition across the north-east in 2022. With a 34 per cent increase so far from last year the north-east recorded the highest burden of acute malnutrition since 2016, and, over 300,000 children are expected to suffer from severe acute malnutrition. The consequences of inaction are a matter of life and death. If immediate action is not taken, more than five thousand children are expected to die. Those who survive will potentially face lifelong disabilities. Malnutrition puts children at greater risk of dying from comm...

Daily Rendezvous  A TRIBUTE TO AID WORKERS ON THE FRONT LINES IN NORTH-EAST NIGERIA Today on the occasion of World Humanitarian Day, the humanitarian community in north-east Nigeria honors all aid workers stepping up to respond each day to the crisis in the region by providing life-saving assistance to millions of women, children and men. This year’s theme #ItTakesAVillage is built upon the metaphor, ‘It takes a village to raise a child.’ At an event commemorating World Humanitarian Day today in Maiduguri Mr. Matthias Schmale, United Nations (UN) Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Nigeria stated, “Just as it takes a village to raise a child, it takes a whole community to help people in need; to provide urgent health care, shelter, food, protection, transportation, security, water and much more.” He noted that the humanitarian ‘village’ in north-east Nigeria proudly includes volunteers and paid staff from civil society, national and international NGOs,...

Daily Rendezvous The UN Residents Humanitarian Coordinator in Nigeria, Matthias Schmale, has expressed concern over the spate of violence by Non State Armed Groups (NSAGs) in Northeast Nigeria leading to the killing of about 30 Civilians, injuring 57, destroying over 500 homes and displacing over 10, 000 locals in Guyuk and Lamurde local governments of Adamawa state. The Humanitarian Coordinator said, some 32 Internally Displaced Persons have also been killed in Mudu village in the outskirts of Dikwa, all between the months of May and June, 2022. This is contained in statement issued by the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). Schmale said, these strings of violence are endangering the lives of civilians and hampering humanitarian efforts at securing and delivering assistance to millions who are in need in  northeast Nigeria. The statement reads, "I am gravely concerned about the recent waves of violence affecting civilians in north-e...

Daily Rendezvous The Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, Mr. Martins Griffiths has allocated US$15 million emergency funding from the UN Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) to support urgently needed humanitarian assistance in north-east Nigeria.  “The food security and nutrition situation is deteriorating, with more and more families pushed towards vulnerability, and forced to resort to negative coping mechanisms including child labour and early marriage,” said the UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator (a.i) for Nigeria Mr. Matthias Schmale.  “As desperation pushes extremely vulnerable people to the edge, food and nutrition assistance is critical for their survival. The $15 million CERF allocation comes right on time to respond to the most urgent needs of people at extreme risk as we appeal to Member States to provide the resources we urgently need.”  The CERF allocation will enable humanitarian...

Daily Rendezvous US$351 million is urgently needed by the UN and partners to intervene  and save lives in North-East Nigeria as underlined by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) in partnership with the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), World Food Programme (WFP), Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) at a Joint Advocacy Event on Food Security and Nutrition in North-East Nigeria in Abuja on 8 April 2022.  The initiative aimed to raise awareness and advocate for urgent resource mobilization from both the international community and the Nigerian Government. The UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator, Mr. Matthias Schmale called to leverage the resilience of local communities and partners and to work to move beyond emergency assistance and help people grow their own food, build livelihoods and strengthen their resilience.  He stated that 4.1 million people in...

Daily Rendezvous Since its deployment in July 2018 at the request of the Resident / Humanitarian Coordinator, UNMAS Nigeria has provided critical life-saving assistance. The main objectives are to develop the national capacities to protect the civilians from the threats of mines and explosives, and to mitigate immediate threats for the vulnerable population in the North-east. The activities include coordination, risk reduction, victim assistance, nontechnical survey, and capacity development for the national and state authorities as well as a civil organization.   As of 28th February 2022, UNMAS Nigeria has achieved the following outputs.    - Explosive Ordnance Risk Education (EORE). EORE is designed to raise awareness on explosive hazards and enhance safe behaviour. UNMAS has coordinated EORE for 1,251,155 (242,225 men, 280,903, women, 394,960 boys and 331,976 girls) beneficiaries across northeast Nigeria.  - UNMAS has also conducted EORE tra...

Daily Rendezvous At a time of unprecedented humanitarian needs, funding shortfall, COVID-19, and climate shocks, the Nigeria Humanitarian Fund (NHF) is allocating $23.8 million to 75 eligible humanitarian partners, including national non-governmental organisations, to help them address critical humanitarian needs and ensure that essential assistance reaches people affected by conflict, food insecurity, inclement weather  and disease outbreaks in north-east Nigeria. According to Trond Jensen, Head of Office for United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) Nigeria, "It is my sincere hope that this next round of funding allocated to partners will support remote education activities, reduce protection risks, improve shelters, and ensure food assistance is provided to communities." Forty per cent of the fund for each sector will be allocated to the humanitarian response in Adamawa and Yobe, and 60 percent to response in Borno, t...

Daily Rendezvous The United Nations has condemned in totality, the killing of about 110 farmers in Koshobe, in Jere Local government of Borno State, North East Nigeria. United nations states that, about 110 farmers who were harvesting their crops were ruthlessly murdered by non state armed groups and that several women might have been kidnapped. This is contained in press statement issued by the UN humanitarian coordinator, Edward Kallon and made available to Daily Rendezvous, Sunday. Kallon said, "I am outraged and horrified by the gruesome attack against civilians carried out by non-state armed groups in villages near Borno State capital Maiduguri.  "At least 110 civilians were ruthlessly killed and many others were wounded in this attack.     "In early afternoon of 28 November, armed men on motorcycles led a brutal attack on civilian men and women who were harvesting their fields in Koshobe and other rural communities in Jere Local Government A...