Germany has reaffirmed its support for recovery efforts in Northeast Nigeria with a €20 million donation to the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and World Food Programme (WFP) joint Resilience Programme.
Funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) through KfW Development Bank, the donation will support the second phase of the programme, building on a successful initial phase that reached over 150,000 vulnerable individuals—including under-five children, pregnant and breastfeeding women, out-of-school children, and food-insecure households.
In a joint statement on Thursday, UNICEF and WFP announced the launch of the second phase of the resilience and peacebuilding project, which is being implemented in partnership with the governments of Borno and Yobe States. The initiative aims to expand access to essential services, food security, and peacebuilding interventions, targeting over 200,000 beneficiaries across additional local government areas: Bama and Konduga in Borno, and Potiskum and Jakusko in Yobe.
The UN agencies emphasized that years of armed conflict in the region have severely disrupted livelihoods, deepened food insecurity, and undermined social cohesion, particularly among women and children. Combined with climate shocks, these challenges have displaced families and led to rising rates of acute malnutrition.
The second phase will deliver a wide range of interventions, including child protection, nutrition, safe water supply, access to education and vocational skills, promotion of locally produced nutritious foods, improved food systems, livelihood support, environmental restoration, and the establishment of peace clubs in schools.
WFP Nigeria Country Director, David Stevenson, noted: “Food insecurity in Northeast Nigeria remains one of the most critical challenges, worsened by climate and economic shocks. Thanks to Germany’s support, we’re strengthening climate-resilient food systems and improving outcomes for the most vulnerable.”
UNICEF Representative in Nigeria, Cristian Munduate, added: “The region remains one of the toughest places to be a child or a woman. With German support, we’re building household resilience and improving wellbeing one child and woman at a time.”
Dr. Karin Jansen, Head of Development Cooperation at the German Embassy, reaffirmed Germany’s commitment to long-term, community-led recovery efforts in the region.
So far, the programme has achieved significant impact: over 60 solar-powered and 18 hand pump boreholes have been built or rehabilitated, providing safe water to nearly 300,000 people. It has also facilitated education access for nearly 40,000 out-of-school children and supported over 6,000 smallholder farmers with drought-resistant seeds and solar irrigation systems, boosting food production and household incomes.
The agencies stressed that sustained collaboration and investment remain critical to transitioning communities in the region from crisis to recovery and self-reliance.
