“Political instability in Niger puts children at risk”

2023-08-12 15:27:12

“The political instability in Niger occurs at a time when humanitarian needs were already enormous, in a country where the armed conflict has been ongoing since 2015, with an escalation of hunger as a consequence of this insecurity and aggravated by climate change and the global economic crisis. As of January this year, more than 645,000 people have been forced to leave their homes and more than 900 schools are closed. Across the country, 4.3 million people are in need of humanitarian aid,” said Nahiou Hima, Acting Director of Plan International Niger.

“Plan International’s priority right now is to continue providing essential humanitarian aid to the most vulnerable children and their families. We are working tirelessly to ensure that our food, child protection and education programs can continue to run smoothly.”

“It is essential that all parties involved do their part to ensure that humanitarian organizations can continue their essential work and that humanitarian principles are upheld at all times. At a time when we fear increased humanitarian needs, with a potentially prolonged lean season and the risk of devastating floods, we call on all stakeholders to facilitate humanitarian access within Niger and also across borders to ensure that essential aid can reach the people who need it,” Hima concluded.