The United Nations recently warned that 120,000 people, most of them children, are likely to die of starvation within the next year in northeastern Nigeria. Currently, an estimated 400,000 children in the region are suffering from very severe malnutrition, and 75,000 may die within the next few months.
Boko Haram, a militant group, has ravaged the country through bombings, assassinations, and abductions in an attempt to overthrow the Nigerian government. The insurgency has made farmland and roads inaccessible – preventing locals from harvesting crops and obstructing efforts to provide humanitarian aid. Millions of people have been displaced from their homes, thousands have been killed, and now hundreds of thousands are starving.
A Guardian correspondent reported having witnessed skeletal babies and children receiving fluids into their skulls. The children were so thin that often the skull was the only place a vein could be found – and this horrific sight was witnessed in Maiduguri, one of the best-served places in the region.
Kevin Watkins, chief executive of Save the Children, said that despite the horrific conditions, “The international community hasn’t responded on any scale at all.” Orla Fagan, a Nigeria-based spokesperson for the United Nations, said, "It’s the biggest crisis on the continent and it’s being ignored."
The plight of the Nigerian people is beyond heartbreaking and unimaginable to most of us. Please sign this urgent petition calling upon the United Nations to declare the tragic situation in Nigeria a Level 3 Emergency – classification for the highest degree of crisis that would attract international attention and funds to avert further catastrophe. We are also calling upon UN member nations around the world to take action to help the people of Nigeria. It would be simply unconscionable for the worldwide community to witness the starvation of hundreds of thousands of people without taking steps to prevent such a disaster.
Photo Courtesy of: Cate Turton / Department for International Development
Ban Ki-moon, Secretary-General of the United Nations; Stephen O'Brien, Under-Secretary-General and Emergency Relief Coordinator, United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affiars; UN Member Nations:
I was horrified to learn that 120,000 people, most of them children, are likely to die of starvation within the next year in northeastern Nigeria. Currently, an estimated 400,000 children in the region are suffering from very severe malnutrition, and 75,000 may die within the next few months.
Kevin Watkins, chief executive of Save the Children, said that despite the horrific conditions, “The international community hasn’t responded on any scale at all.” Orla Fagan, a Nigeria-based spokesperson for the United Nations, said, "It’s the biggest crisis on the continent and it’s being ignored."
I urge the United Nations to declare the tragic situation in Nigeria a Level 3 emergency. Classification of the highest degree of crisis is needed to attract international attention and funds to avert further catastrophe.
I also request that UN member nations around the world take action to help the people of Nigeria.
The plight of the Nigerian people is beyond heartbreaking and unimaginable to most of us. It would be simply unconscionable for the worldwide community to witness the starvation of hundreds of thousands of people without taking steps to prevent such a disaster.
Thank you for your consideration.
[your comments]
Sincerely,
[your name]
