International medical humanitarian organisation, Médecins Sans Frontières, has raised alarm over a worsening humanitarian crisis in Nigeria, warning that escalating hunger, disease outbreaks and insecurity are pushing thousands of vulnerable families, particularly children, toward severe hardship and preventable deaths.
In its 2025 Nigeria Country Report of Activities, MSF described an increasingly dire situation across northern Nigeria, where overstretched health facilities are battling rising cases of severe acute malnutrition, infectious diseases and conflict-related displacement.
According to the organisation, more than 250,000 severely malnourished children received treatment through outpatient programmes in 2024, while over 76,000 children suffering life-threatening complications linked to malnutrition required emergency hospital admission.
MSF warned that malnutrition in Nigeria has evolved beyond a seasonal emergency into a chronic humanitarian crisis driven by inflation, insecurity, poverty and weakening access to healthcare services.
“Malnutrition is no longer just an emergency during the lean season. For many families, it has become a permanent condition of survival,” the report stated.
The organisation said medical facilities supported by MSF across the Northwest and Northeast are facing mounting pressure from increasing admissions related to hunger, measles, malaria and respiratory infections.
In Bauchi State, the report noted that nearly 28,000 malnourished children were treated between January and April 2025 alone, representing a sharp increase compared to the same period in 2024.
MSF also highlighted the growing impact of the combined burden of malaria and malnutrition in Kano State and neighbouring states, warning that both conditions are reinforcing each other and significantly increasing the risk of child mortality.
According to the report, many families seeking medical assistance arrive at treatment centres only after exhausting limited coping mechanisms, including skipping meals, selling household possessions and withdrawing children from school.
Beyond hunger and disease, the humanitarian organisation expressed concern over the impact of insecurity on healthcare delivery in conflict-affected communities, where violence and displacement continue to restrict access to medical services for millions of residents.
MSF stated that its teams often operate under difficult logistical and security conditions while responding to disease outbreaks and medical emergencies in fragile communities.
The report also referenced the organisation’s longstanding intervention against Lassa fever in Ebonyi State, where it supported treatment services, laboratory systems and emergency preparedness before transferring responsibilities to local authorities this year.
Despite ongoing interventions, MSF warned that humanitarian needs across Nigeria are growing faster than available resources and called for urgent investment in nutrition programmes, primary healthcare, disease surveillance and protection for vulnerable populations.
The organisation cautioned that failure to address the crisis decisively could further deepen the already fragile humanitarian situation confronting millions of Nigerians affected by economic hardship, insecurity and limited access to healthcare.
