By Olukayode Michael, Maiduguri
United
Nations said flood has cut off over 40,000 persons from food supply and other
humanitarian services in Rann in Northern Borno.
A statement by UN- Office for the Coordination of the Humanitarian Affairs on
Saturday said: “More than 40,000 men, women and children – mostly
internally displaced people – have little or no access to food or services in
the town of Rann, Borno State, due to heavy flooding of the River Kaalia in
neighbouring Cameroon since 7 November.”
The statement further said the flooding damaged an estimated 4,000 hectares of
farmland, destroying crops that are the main source of food for internally
displaced persons (IDPs) staying in Rann.
It lamented that stranded populations are running short of food and those who
can afford it are paying high sums to be transported to the other areas, also
putting their life at risk while crossing the river or travelling to safety.
It said more than 300 people from Rann,
a remote town in an area where violent attacks from non-State armed groups are
frequent and access is difficult for humanitarian assistance due to the high
insecurity and poor road conditions, have managed to reach Ngala, a town some
40 km away, according to the International Organization for Migration.
IOM claimed they had managed to leave Rann before the road became impassable.
The statement by UN-OCHA said humanitarian partners are mobilizing resources to
reach the stranded population via the UN Humanitarian Air Services until access
is secured for small boats. Providing food is the main priority, along with
water, shelters and emergency health services.
The statement further said in neighbouring Adamawa State, more than 100,000
people are also affected by severe flooding across seven Local Government Areas
since 27 October, following torrential rainfall and overflow of water from the
Niger and Benue rivers.
It said the Adamawa floods have caused the displacement of about 19,000 people
and the Government, leading on the response, has opened nine camps for IDPs.
It said the UN and humanitarian partners are scaling up assistance in Adamawa
State as well and have already provided reproductive health kits to more than
56,000 people; non-food items to 400 families; and farming items to 4,000
families in areas that were not reached by Government assistance.
The UN lamented that Nigeria’s north-eastern Borno and Adamawa states are
currently facing the worst floods in seven years, which have destroyed homes
and livelihoods across entire communities in the region. About 300,000 people
have been affected by floods so far this year, which is at least five times
more than expected in the humanitarian contingency plan based on an average
from previous years.
The latest flooding, coming at a time when the rain season would usually be
over, compounds an already dire humanitarian situation in two of the three
states most affected by the 10-year conflict, with 7.1 million people in need of
urgent assistance this year.
The 2019 Humanitarian Response Plan for Nigeria is seeking US$848 million to
assist 6.2 million people and is 60 per cent funded so far.
