6.4 million Children in Nigeria’s northeast face acute malnutrition, says ICRC

No fewer than 6.4 million children under the age of five in northern Nigeria are suffering from acute malnutrition as food insecurity worsens in communities affected by years of armed conflict, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has said.

The humanitarian organisation warned that fifteen years of violence in the Northeast has disrupted farming, displaced millions of residents, and weakened household food systems, leaving young children particularly vulnerable to hunger and disease.

In an operational update released on Tuesday, the ICRC said the malnutrition crisis affects children across the Northeast, Northwest, and North Central regions, describing it as one of the most devastating consequences of the prolonged conflict.

Children under five, pregnant women, and lactating mothers remain the most at risk, especially in hard-to-reach areas in Borno and parts of Yobe State, where severe acute malnutrition rates remain persistently high.

The organisation explained that displacement from farmland and loss of livelihoods have pushed many families into food insecurity, with children often bearing the brunt of the crisis.

Illustrating the severity of the situation, the ICRC recounted the experience of Zainab, a mother who brought her 22-month-old son Umar to a nutritional stabilisation centre in Damaturu, Yobe State.

When she arrived at the centre, the child was barely conscious in her arms, with severe swelling on his face and feet caused by nutritional edema, a life-threatening condition linked to prolonged lack of essential nutrients.

“I thought I was going to lose him,” Zainab recalled.

Health workers said that without urgent medical treatment, children suffering from severe acute malnutrition rarely survive.

Umar was immediately placed on therapeutic feeding and received close medical monitoring. Within a week, the swelling began to subside, and he gradually regained his appetite.

The ICRC said such cases reflect a broader humanitarian crisis affecting displaced communities across the region.

Another displaced mother, Fatima, said the conflict forced her family out of Sabon Gari, leaving her to care for 13 children with little food.

“When we were displaced, we lost our source of livelihood. We depended on neighbours and odd jobs just to eat,” she said.

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Humanitarian workers said the loss of farmland and income opportunities has created a direct link between displacement and malnutrition in many communities.

A nutrition expert with the ICRC in Biu, Borno State, Bob Wonder Panama, said the organisation treats more than 1,000 children under the age of five every year through stabilisation centres and health facilities supported by the agency.

“To maintain the gains made during admission, children are given a two-week supply of ready-to-use therapeutic food when they are discharged,” he said.

The ICRC stressed that medical treatment alone cannot resolve the crisis, noting that the increase in malnutrition is rooted in deeper challenges caused by conflict, poverty, and food shortages.

To address the underlying causes, the organisation said it combines nutrition treatment with livelihood support, improved access to safe drinking water, and seasonal assistance aimed at helping families cope during difficult food-producing periods.

Support programmes also include the distribution of improved seeds, veterinary support for pastoral communities, and cash assistance for vulnerable households during the lean season.

According to the organisation, these interventions have helped some displaced families gradually rebuild their food security.

Fatima said her family’s situation improved after receiving agricultural support and seasonal cash assistance.

“Our situation changed when we received improved seeds during the rainy season and cash during the lean season. We harvested enough corn, rice, and vegetables to feed the children three times a day,” she said.

The ICRC said its humanitarian operations in Nigeria reached hundreds of thousands of people in 2025.

It said more than 348,000 people including over 16,000 children under five and more than 19,000 pregnant and lactating women received treatment for severe acute malnutrition in health facilities supported by the organisation in Borno, Adamawa and Yobe states.

Community-based nutrition interventions were also carried out in 125 communities across the Northeast, including infant feeding initiatives and supplementary feeding programmes.

During the 2025 lean season, the organisation said more than 17,000 vulnerable families received three rounds of cash assistance to meet urgent food needs.

In addition, over 168,000 people engaged in farming received climate-smart seeds, irrigation systems, and other agricultural inputs aimed at improving food production and household income.

Despite these interventions, the humanitarian body warned that the needs remain high as insecurity, displacement, and funding constraints continue to affect relief operations across northern Nigeria.

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