The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) will shut down half of its clinics in Nigeria’s conflict-affected northeast this month, as falling donor support forces the agency to scale back critical humanitarian operations.
More than 150 WFP-supported nutrition clinics in Borno and Yobe states are set to close unless new funding is secured.
If that happens, over 300,000 children under the age of two will lose access to potentially lifesaving treatment.
“This is no longer just a humanitarian crisis,” said WFP Country Director David Stevenson.
“It’s a growing threat to regional stability as families pushed beyond their limits are left with nowhere to turn.”
Despite urgent calls for $130 million to keep its programs running through 2025, the WFP has reported receiving no funding to continue providing food and nutrition support for 1.3 million people.
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Nigeria is facing an escalating food crisis, with a record 31 million people currently experiencing food insecurity, according to the United Nations.
Conditions are particularly severe in the insurgency-hit northeast, where nearly one in five people is suffering from acute hunger.
The WFP has already begun cutting back food rations in Nigeria, largely due to a steep drop in U.S. financial support.
The reduction stems from an executive order signed by President Donald Trump on January 20, 2025, which placed a 90-day freeze on all U.S. foreign development assistance.
The order, part of Trump’s renewed “America First” agenda, led to an immediate suspension of many international aid programs.
As of now, the U.S. continues to push for deep cuts to foreign aid.
The Nigerian Ministry of Health has not yet detailed how it plans to respond to the looming gap.
This year, the federal government allocated just $326,000 to tackle malnutrition and stunting in the most affected states, a figure widely viewed as far too low given the scale of the emergency.
Across Africa, humanitarian agencies are struggling with a sharp decline in foreign aid.
While the U.S. under President Trump has led the pullback, several European countries are also shifting focus to domestic priorities, leaving vulnerable nations like Nigeria increasingly exposed.
In July, Doctors Without Borders warned of a deadly rise in child malnutrition in northern Nigeria, directly linked to the sharp fall in foreign assistance.
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Image Credit: Abuja Clinics
