Funding Crisis Forces WFP to Halt Emergency Food Aid in Nigeria as Hunger and Insecurity Intensify

ABUJA, Nigeria – A critical funding shortfall has pushed the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) to the brink of suspending all emergency food and nutrition support for 1.3 million vulnerable people in northeast Nigeria by the end of July. The suspension comes at a time when violence is escalating and the number of people facing acute hunger in the country has soared to an unprecedented 31 million.

According to WFP, its food and nutrition stocks in Nigeria have been completely exhausted. The agency’s last remaining supplies left warehouses in early July, with life-saving distributions set to end once these run out. Without immediate financial support, millions risk being left with no alternative but to endure worsening hunger, migrate in search of food or fall prey to recruitment by extremist groups operating in the region.

“Nearly 31 million people in Nigeria are now facing acute hunger, a record number,” said David Stevenson, WFP Country Director for Nigeria, in a statement shared on Tuesday. “At the same time, WFP’s operations in northeast Nigeria will collapse without immediate, sustained funding. This is no longer just a humanitarian crisis; it is a growing threat to regional stability, as families pushed beyond their limits are left with nowhere to turn.”

Children stand to suffer the most if emergency aid ends. Over 150 nutrition clinics supported by WFP in Borno and Yobe states will be forced to close, halting treatment for more than 300,000 children under two who are at heightened risk of wasting, a potentially fatal condition.

The crisis is unfolding against a backdrop of worsening insecurity. In northern Nigeria and across the wider Lake Chad Basin, attacks by extremist groups have displaced roughly 2.3 million people, stretching already limited community resources to breaking point.

“When emergency assistance ends, many will migrate in search of food and shelter. Others will adopt negative coping mechanisms, including potentially joining insurgent groups, to survive,” Stevenson warned. “Food assistance can often prevent these outcomes. It allows us to feed families, help rebuild economies and support long-term recovery.”

Despite these challenges, WFP has so far managed to reach 1.3 million people in northern Nigeria with food and nutrition aid in the first half of 2025. The agency had planned to support another 720,000 people by the end of the year, but those efforts now hang in the balance.

To continue operations through to December 2025 and prevent a total pipeline break, WFP urgently requires an additional US$130 million. Without this funding, the humanitarian situation risks deteriorating further, leaving millions of already vulnerable people with little hope of relief.

For more information, visit the official statement by the United Nations World Food Programme (www.wfp.org).

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