The United Nations Humanitarian Air Service (UNHAS) has ended its fixed-wing air service in Nigeria because of lack of funding. Stéphane Dujarric, Spokesperson for the Secretary-General, confirmed this during the noon press briefing at the UN Headquarters in New York.
UNHAS, which is managed by the World Food Programme (WFP), stopped the service last week. Dujarric explained that for nine years, the flights transported humanitarian staff, medical supplies, and cargo to crisis areas in Borno and Yobe states.
He noted that Nigeria has faced 16 years of conflict, making road transport extremely dangerous. According to him, air transport has been a lifeline for humanitarian operations in the northeast.
The World Food Programme had earlier warned of suspending emergency food and nutrition aid for 1.3 million people in the northeast at the end of July.
WFP Regional Director for West and Central Africa, Margot van der Velden, described the situation as dire while briefing UN Correspondents in New York.
Velden said the organisation urgently needs 130 million dollars to sustain food and nutrition operations for six months.
She added, “Due to the severe funding cuts that the World Food Programme is facing, we have exhausted our food and nutrition resources. And at the beginning of August, we will have to face the heartbreaking reality of having to suspend our operations for the populations in northeast Nigeria.”
She explained that teams would have to tell communities that aid is ending, not because there is no need, but because there are no funds.
Velden warned that without help, millions could face severe hunger, displacement, or possible exploitation by extremist groups.
At the same time, she praised the Nigerian government’s support. “I also would like to say that the government of Nigeria is the largest financier of this emergency response now in the northeast of Nigeria,” she said.
In 2024, UNHAS carried over 9,000 passengers. Already this year, 4,500 humanitarian staff have relied on the flights to reach affected areas.
Dujarric stressed that UNHAS needs 5.4 million dollars to remain operational for the next six months. He warned, “Without this funding, the humanitarian response in northeast Nigeria risks being cut off from the very people it is meant to serve.”