With a deteriorating food security and nutrition crisis in Borno, Adamawa and Yobe (BAY) states this lean season*(May to September), the Government of Nigeria, national and international partners today launched an appeal seeking US$306 million to fast-track food assistance, nutrition supplies and services, clean water, healthcare, and protection support to people in severe need during the period.

In the BAY states, some 4.8 million people are estimated to be facing severe food insecurity, the highest levels in seven years, according to the Government-led Cadre Harmonisé analysis released in March this year. Children, pregnant and lactating women, older persons, and people living with disabilities are among those who are most vulnerable. The appeal, the lean season food security and nutrition crisis multisector plan, is targeting 2.8 million of these people for urgent interventions.

This food and nutrition crisis, which has been compounded by soaring food prices, is primarily due to continued conflict and insecurity in the BAY states, alongside climate change impacts. It threatens to become catastrophic without immediate and coordinated intervention. The prices of staple foods like beans and maize have increased by 300 to 400 per cent over the past year following the removal of the fuel subsidy and the depreciation of the naira. Inflation is outpacing the ability of families to cope, making essential food items unaffordable.

Malnutrition rates are of great concern. Approximately 700,000 children under five are projected to be acutely malnourished over the next six months, including 230,000 who are expected to be severely acutely malnourished and at risk of death if they do not receive timely treatment and nutrition support.

Speaking at the launch of the plan, the Director General of the National Emergency Management Agency, Zubaida Umar said: “The mobilization of funding and resources to address this lean season food security and nutrition crisis envisaged in the north-eastern part of the country is a step in the right direction in complementing the Federal Government’s efforts to prevent the deaths of people as a result of malnutrition-related complications, adoption of negative coping mechanisms and other health related issues among others.”

Announcing the release of $11 million from the Nigeria Humanitarian Fund to jumpstart the emergency response, United Nations Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator Mohamed Malick Fall said, “I am confident that we have the capacity to address these increased needs in support of Government efforts, what we need now are resources. Joining hands together, pooling resources, to save lives and stop the suffering”.

“UNICEF is deeply concerned about the escalating food security and nutrition crisis in the BAY states. The alarming rise in severe acute malnutrition among children underscores the urgent need for immediate action. This year alone, we have seen around 120,000 admissions for the treatment of severe acute malnutrition with complications, far exceeding our estimated target of 90,000. We must ensure that lifesaving nutrition commodities reach every child in need. This is not just a call to action; it is a race against time to save lives and protect the future of millions of vulnerable children,” said Dr Rownak Khan, the Acting Representative of UNICEF Nigeria.

While highlighting that immediate actions need to be taken for longer term results, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) Representative ad interim in Nigeria, Dominique Koffy Kouacou, said, “given the urgent situation, urgent interventions are required to support short-, medium- and long-term needs of vulnerable populationsTOThe focus therefore needs to be on building resilience supported by emergency agriculture, including seeds, fertilizer, livestock and technical training, and developing agribusiness for better production and better nutrition”.

The World Food Programme (WFP) Country Director, David Stevenson, said: “We need to get out of conflict into solutions, and the solution is peace and production. Meanwhile, there remains a conflict in the north-east that requires our collective urgent assistance. We are prioritizing access to nutritious foods by providing cash-based transfers, specialized nutritious foods, and by supporting local food solutions.”

With the lean season coinciding with the rainy season, there is a need for collective efforts to improve access to drinking water, sanitation facilities, and hygiene to combat the spread of infectious diseases, particularly among the more than 2 million internally displaced persons in camps and overcrowded settlements in the BAY states. This is crucial to help break the vicious cycle of disease and malnutrition that threatens the lives of young children and other vulnerable people.

Alongside efforts to protect lives, there is also a need to strengthen people’s resilience by supporting agricultural livelihoods which sustain over 80 per cent of the vulnerable people across the BAY states. Limited funding for agricultural livelihoods continues to perpetuate cyclical food insecurity.

This is the fourth time that the UN and humanitarian partners are launching an operational plan for the BAY states pointing to the need to address the root causes of hunger and malnutrition. This includes but is not limited to advancing peace-building efforts, improving access to essential health care services, supporting food production systems, enhancing social protection services, and mitigating climate change shocks.

The lean season food security and nutrition crisis multisector plan is part of the 2024 UN-coordinated Humanitarian Response Plan for Nigeria.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

The following statement was issued today by the Spokesman for UN Secretary-General António Guterres:

The Secretary-General is gravely concerned by the outbreak of fighting in El Fasher, which puts over 800,000 civilians at risk.  He is alarmed by reports of the use of heavy weaponry in densely populated areas, resulting in dozens of civilian casualties, significant displacement and the destruction of civilian infrastructure.  He recalls that civilians in the area are already facing a looming famine and the consequences of over a year of war.

The Secretary-General reminds all parties of their obligation under international humanitarian law to protect civilians and calls on them to allow the civilian population to move to safer areas.  He also requests that all parties facilitate safe, rapid and unimpeded humanitarian access to all civilians in need in El Fasher, across Darfur and the Sudan.  Intentionally directing attacks against the civilian population and wilfully impeding humanitarian relief for civilians in need may constitute war crimes.

The Secretary-General urges the parties to immediately stop the fighting and resume ceasefire negotiations without further delay.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of United Nations Secretary-General.

High-level OPEC officials unpacked the Organization’s short- to long-term crude oil market perspectives in a special session at the Invest in African Energy forum in Paris on Tuesday.

Based on OPEC’s latest Monthly Oil Market Report – released on May 14 – and World Oil Outlook, the session identified key growth drivers of oil supply and demand through 2045, underscoring the role of African and emerging markets in driving global economic activity.

“We believe in the future of Africa and the South-South – we see almost all of global oil demand coming out of emerging markets,” said Dr. Ayed Al-Qahtani, Director of Research Division and OPEC. “We see the global economy at least doubling in size and emerging nations commanding the lion’s share of energy demand going forward. Africa sits on north of 120 billion barrels of crude, and this can be extended to all commodities – precious metals, gas, hydropower, all of the above. The issue of investment is significant and hinders the exploitation of these resources that could facilitate huge potential for economic growth.”

“In the medium-term, non-OPEC supply will drive the market – we’re looking at an addition of 7 million barrels of oil per day – from Brazil, Guyana and Canada. However, we expect this supply to peak towards the 2030s. As soon as it peaks, there will be increased demand in OPEC supply and this demand will rise to about 40% share of the oil market by 2045,” said Irene Nkem Etiobhio, Chief Petroleum Industry Analyst. 

With positive economic growth anticipated into 2025, the panel shared insights into the role of inflation and various economic, social and geopolitical factors, particularly in the US, on global oil supply and demand. 

“We believe that inflation will remain high during 2024 and 2025, but will gradually decline and there will be less of a need for stringent monetary policies. Global economic growth will stand at 2.8% for 2024 and 2.9% for 2025,” said Behrooz Baikalizadeh, Head, Petroleum Studies Department.

“We estimate the US economy to grow by 2.9% in 2024 and by around 1.9% in 2025. Against this backdrop of a strong US economy, inflationary pressures will likely remain and will potentially delay decisions to lower interest rates. The strength of the US economy, coupled with inflationary pressures, will likely… result in high commodity prices,” said Angel Edjang Memba, Senior Financial Analyst.

The panel also highlighted recent developments in refining and trade on the continent and their impact on the price and availability of refined petroleum products. While Africa’s refining capacity has been limited to date, new developments – including Nigeria’s 650,000-barrel per day Dangote refinery – are reshaping the sector. 

“There have been notable changes in global refining capacity with new large-scale refineries coming online … These have contributed to a rise in new product supplies. In the near-term, this will exhibit pressure on refining margins, but could also be a good sign for end consumers, where prices are going down with more supply,” said Tona Ndamba, Chief Refinery&Products Analyst.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Energy Capital&Power.

Boasting 60% of the world’s best solar resources, Africa’s solar power potential presents multiple opportunities for investors seeking long-term, scalable financial prospects. A panel session during this year’s Invest in African Energy (IAE) 2024 forum explored strategies to unlock financing for renewable energy projects across the continent.

Taking place in Paris on May 14, the session, which included independent power producer ENGIE Energy Access, featured a robust discussion around solar energy deployment. Committed to raising electrification rates across the continent, the company is developing a $60 million mini-grid project in Nigeria, which is set for completion by 2026 and is poised to connect over 150,000 people to the grid.

“More than 600 million people lack access to electricity, and ENGIE Access’ goal is to bridge this gap,” stated ENGIE Energy Access Head of Funding Marie Testard, adding, “ENGIE Energy Access is the energy access company that aims to deploy this solution in sub-Saharan Africa, and so far, we have a presence in nine countries, building almost 10 GW of mini-grids.”

Meanwhile, having secured $222.5 million in commitments from African institutional investors in January, pan-African infrastructure investment platform Africa50 Group is well positioned to deploy a pipeline of renewable energy infrastructure projects. The fund is poised to play a vital role in addressing the continent’s energy needs while promoting inclusive and sustainable development.

“The African continent has a lot of renewable resources and the highest solar potential in the world, with only 5 GW of installed solar capacity so far,” stated Africa50 Infrastructure Investment Platform Strategy Director Molly Gbodimowo, adding, “Overall, Africa requires $277 billion annually to implement its 2030 Sustainable Development Goals.”

Underscoring the pivotal role of public-private partnerships and innovative financing mechanisms in driving renewable energy initiatives, the speakers stressed the importance of local institutions and a favorable investment environment in Africa.

Additionally, it was noted that Africa’s path towards a more sustainable future will require a concerted effort from international stakeholders in the continent’s energy sector to divest from carbon-intensive resources and move towards renewables.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Energy Capital&Power.