Hunger and Disease Worsen in Nigeria as Aid Cuts Deepen, Federal Government Struggles to Respond
Story: written by okafor joseph Afam August 18,2025
Millions of vulnerable Nigerians are facing worsening hunger and health crises following major aid cuts from the United States and the United Kingdom, leaving the federal government scrambling to fill the widening humanitarian gap.
Donor-funded health programmes are shutting down, maternal health services are collapsing, and thousands of children are at risk of starvation as international partners scale back support.
Mdevaan Nyitor, a knowledge management and communications specialist at Palladium, an implementing partner of USAID’s Integrated Health Programme (IHP), said the funding cuts have had devastating consequences on critical health services.
“The programme has been shut down completely, leaving hundreds of thousands of expectant mothers and children without access to skilled care,” Nyitor explained.
Before its suspension, the USAID IHP supported 160 health facilities in the Federal Capital Territory, including 92 primary health centres, 12 general hospitals, and 56 private facilities. The programme was credited with averting more than 104,000 unintended pregnancies, preventing 533 maternal deaths, and saving the lives of over 2,600 children.
In the North-East, the situation is far more dire. The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) has warned that over 300,000 malnourished children in Borno, Adamawa, and Yobe states face imminent hunger as funding shortages force the closure of more than 150 nutrition centres.
The agency confirmed that its food and nutrition stocks were exhausted in July, meaning emergency food aid for 1.3 million people in the region will be suspended this month without fresh funding.
“Without immediate funding, millions of vulnerable people will face impossible choices: endure worsening hunger, migrate in search of help, or risk falling into the hands of extremist groups,” the WFP cautioned.
Medical charity Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) also reported alarming trends. Between January and June 2025, the number of malnourished children with nutritional oedema — the most severe and often fatal form of malnutrition — increased by 208 percent compared to the same period last year. At least 652 children have already died in MSF-supported facilities this year due to lack of timely treatment.
The Federal Government, through the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, has promised to close the gap created by the aid cuts. However, no clear plan has been unveiled, and citizens say they are yet to feel the impact of government intervention.
Experts warn that without urgent funding and coordinated action, Nigeria could face one of its worst hunger crises in decades, with both food security and public health severely compromised.
Would you like me to expand this with an analysis of the economic impact of aid cuts on Nigeria’s foreign reserves and food imports (for deeper SEO value), or keep it focused strictly on the humanitarian emergency?
