Boko Haram violence in Africa could push number of hungry women, children higher, UN agency warns

The World Food Programme (WFP) on Friday said that it is concerned that the number of children under five and women suffering from malnutrition in areas of Nigeria, Cameroon, Chad, and Niger affected by Boko Haram violence may rise even further, a UN spokesman told reporters here.

"More than 5.6 million people are already experiencing moderate or severe food insecurity," UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said at a daily news briefing here. "In the worst affected areas, under-five malnutrition exceeds the World Health Organisation's emergency threshold by significant margins."

WFP aims to provide food and nutrition support to about 600,000 people in response to rising food insecurity, malnutrition and displacement, the spokesman said.

Boko Haram has since 2009 waged a campaign of violence in Nigeria in an effort to establish an Islamic state, affecting surrounding countries including Niger, Chad and Cameroon.

Violence by Boko Haram in northeast Nigeria has been forcing people out from their homes and across borders, creating a regional food and nutrition crisis.

Close to 200,000 people are seeking refuge in neighboring Niger, Cameroon and Chad, having left behind their homes and their livelihoods. And inside these countries bordering northeast Nigeria, there are growing numbers of internally displaced people.

Cameroon alone hosts more than 100,000 internally displaced people -- that figure has more than tripled since the beginning of the year. WFP aims to provide food to nearly 400,000 people each month but this will be impossible without urgent new funding flows. WFP is less than 50 percent funded -- with 41.6 million U.S. dollars needed until the end of the year. In April and May, WFP provided food to about half of the people we were planning to assist and, in some instances, the ration size was reduced. Endit