As the specter of hunger looms over millions in Nigeria’s northeastern states, the United Nations and Nigerian authorities have launched the 2025 Lean Season Response Plan, calling for $159 million in emergency funding to deliver lifesaving assistance to over 2 million vulnerable people in Borno, Adamawa, and Yobe (BAY) states.
Representing Yobe State Governor, Hon. Mai Mala Buni, at the high level launch in Abuja, Mohammed Goje, executive secertery of Yobe state emergency agency joined stakeholders at UN House, where the plan was unveiled by UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator, Mohammed Fall, and Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Prof. Nentawe Yilwatda.
In a message delivered on behalf of Governor Buni, Goje raised the alarm on looming food insecurity, warning that over 4.6 million people in the BAY states, including 1.5 million in Yobe alone—are projected to face Crisis or Emergency levels of food scarcity between June and September 2025, the peak of the lean season.
“Every second counts,” the Governor declared. “This season will hit our most vulnerable populations the hardest, especially children, as food scarcity drives prices beyond reach.”
With 2.6 million children under five expected to suffer acute malnutrition across the region, Buni emphasized the need for urgent and coordinated action amid declining donor funding.
Despite the dire outlook, Buni expressed hope through resilience-building efforts. He highlighted his administration’s distribution of farm inputs to over 5,300 farmers across 178 wards in 2024, alongside plans to scale up these interventions in 2025.
“We’re expanding irrigation farming, healthcare access, and support for displaced persons and host communities,” Buni noted, adding that Yobe is also investing in nutrition, livelihoods, and social protection.
The Governor further reaffirmed Yobe’s commitment to supporting humanitarian operations, announcing the approval of a one-year office rent payment for the OCHA-led UN compound in the state to close funding gaps and ensure uninterrupted service delivery. Plans are underway for a permanent United Nations Common Compound in Yobe.
“We wholeheartedly endorse the 2025 Lean Season Response Plan and urge urgent global support,” Buni said. “Let’s act with unity and innovation to ensure no child in Yobe—or across the region—goes to bed hungry.”
The call for funding comes at a critical time when international attention is needed to avert a deepening humanitarian crisis in Northeast Nigeria.
