The United Nations Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has raised the alarm that more Nigerians may be displaced in the coming days as a result of the resurgence of Boko Haram in the country’s north-east region.
Peter Lundberg, OCHA humanitarian coordinator for Nigeria said in a Press Conference in Abuja on Tuesday that the main driver of the humanitarian crisis in the north-east continues to be the threat of Boko Haram.
He said up to 1.8 million people remain displaced across the six states of the North-East.
“The onset of the dry season enables greater mobility and the number of attacks on civilians has increased, which could see further displacement to the main centres,” OCHA says.
The organisation also expressed concerns that the use of suicide bombers may continue targeting crowded areas to maximise fatalities and create fears.
Data provided by OCHA shows that 338 Boko Haram related incidents have been recorded this year alone in the north-east with at least, 2,553 fatalities recorded within same period.
OCHA also raised concern about cases of right abuse in the Internally Displaced Persons camps, saying it was making effort to sensitize women and children on safety measures.
Speaking on the right violation in the internally displaced persons camps, Lundberg said OCHA’s job was to work towards the prevention of such cases.
He said efforts will be directed towards the provision of food to the displaced persons as well as those who have returned to their communities, as scarcity of food was responsible for the right abuse on the women and female children in the region.
