The World Food Programme (WFP) says it spent $5 million, approximately N7.4 billion, on shock-response and social protection interventions in Nigeria in 2025.
According to NAN, Serigne Loum, Acting Country Director of WFP, disclosed this on Thursday in Abuja during the inauguration of the Shock-Responsive Social Protection Technical Working Group and validation workshop of the Standard Operating Procedure.
The workshop was organised in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction.
The intervention comes amid a worsening food crisis in Nigeria, with tens of millions of people facing food insecurity, particularly concentrated in the country’s conflict-affected northeast region.
Loum explained that the funding reflects the growing strain on humanitarian systems in Nigeria, driven by years of overlapping crises that have stretched both government agencies and aid organisations.
He added that Nigeria has the potential to become a model for other countries if its shock-responsive social protection systems are properly implemented.
He also noted that Nigeria’s extensive database of poor and vulnerable households provides a strong foundation for scaling targeted interventions and improving the effectiveness of social protection programmes.
Loum highlighted the scale of food insecurity in Nigeria, noting that at least 35 million people are affected, with the majority located in the northeast.
He said the agency supported about 70,000 people in Adamawa State with anticipatory assistance ahead of flooding last year, helping them take preventive measures before the disaster struck, and plans to expand its reach in 2026.
He added that the WFP remains committed to achieving zero hunger in Nigeria, not only through direct interventions but also by strengthening government systems in areas such as social protection, emergency response, anticipatory action, and policy coordination.
In March, the World Food Programme warned that about 10.4 million people in West and Central Africa could be pushed into acute food insecurity if the ongoing Middle East conflict persists.
However, by July of the same year, the agency warned it could suspend emergency food and nutrition assistance for 1.3 million people in northeast Nigeria due to severe funding shortfalls, highlighting ongoing challenges in sustaining humanitarian operations.
