The United Nations (UN) Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Friday expressed sadness at the devastation caused by floods in Nigeria this year, reported The UN News.
Over 2.8 million people have been impacted by Nigeria’s worst floods in a decade, with 1.3 million displaced and hundreds of lives lost.
UN secretary-general extended his deepest condolences to the Nigerian government and to the affected families, reiterating the organizations’ continuing commitment to supporting the country in such challenging times.
The floods destroyed infrastructure and farmland and affected the cost of living across the country, Guterres said in a statement. The submergence of farmlands has sparked fears of increased food insecurity and higher prices in the country.
According to the UN Children’s Fund, UNICEF, 60 percent of those in need of assistance are children, who are at high risk of waterborne diseases, malnutrition and drowning. The floods have affected 34 out of the 36 Nigerian states, and more than 600 people have lost their lives so far, with 200,000 houses either partially or fully damaged.
Cristian Munduate, UNICEF representative in Nigeria, said children and adolescents in flood-affected areas are in an extremely vulnerable situation.
Munduate said the children are particularly at risk of waterborne diseases and psychological and emotional distress. She added that the UNICEF is working along with the Nigerian government and other organizations to provide life-saving assistance to those who are in urgent need. Immediate priority needs for children include health, shelter, food, water, sanitation, and hygiene.
The UN agency said that more funding and resources are required to respond to growing needs and to sustain ongoing humanitarian interventions, with a focus on the most vulnerable, including children with disabilities.
Nigeria is at extremely high risk of the impacts of climate change, ranking second out of 163 countries, according to the UNICEF’s Children’s Climate Risk Index (CCRI).
