Boko Haram terror triggers health crisis for children

ABUJA, Nigeria—More than 475,000 children in the Lake Chad region will face severe malnutrition due to Boko Haram’s insurgency, the United Nations child agency said today. Experts increased the estimate from 175,000 children at risk at the start of the year, raising concerns of a growing humanitarian crisis.

In northeast Nigeria’s Borno state, some 49,000 children could die this year if they don’t receive treatment, UNICEF said.

“The Lake Chad crisis is a children’s crisis that should rank high on the global migration and displacement agenda,” said Manuel Fontaine, UNICEF regional director for West and Central Africa. “Humanitarian needs are outpacing the response, especially now that new areas previously unreachable in north-east Nigeria become accessible.”

Boko Haram’s seven-year insurgency has plagued Nigeria and other countries in the surrounding Lake Chad region already battling drought. The extremist group has killed as many as 15,000 people and displaced more than 2 million others. During the last 18 months, Nigerian and African Union forces have forced Boko Haram out of a majority of the territory it once claimed, but the group continues with sporadic attacks across the region.

Residents have started to return to some of the reclaimed villages, and aid workers now have increased access to evaluate the damage caused by the conflict.

“Towns and villages are in ruins, and communities have no access to basic services,” UNICEF said.

In Borno state, 60 percent of health facilities are partially or completely destroyed, and 75 percent of water and sanitation facilities need repair. The UN also estimated some 2.2 million people, more than half of them children, remain trapped in areas under Boko Haram’s control.

The terror group also has ramped up its use of child suicide bombers in response to the military crackdown. An estimated 38 children have perpetrated attacks across the region, bringing the total number of children used for suicide attacks to 86 since 2014, according to UNICEF.

“Many of the children caught in the conflict have been subjected to unimaginable violence and abuse,” the agency said. “They have lost their families, their homes, and years of education.”