Thousands of people in northeastern and central Nigeria who have been driven from their homes by Islamist militants are now facing a lack of food. In the northeast, Christian Solidarity International (CSI) works with the diocese of Maiduguri to help victims of attacks by the Boko Haram terror group. In central Nigeria CSI partners with the diocese of Kafanchan as well as with the Emancipation Center for Crisis Victims in Nigeria (ECCVN) to ease the plight of survivors of attacks by Fulani Islamists. Most of those in need are Christians.
According to the diocese of Kafanchan, the number of people living in poverty has soared since President Muhammadu Buhari took power in 2015 and millions of Nigerians do not have enough to eat. In the northeast, food supplies are depleted in the summer months and food prices rise. The worsening hunger crisis is also linked to the rise in Islamist attacks by Boko Haram and Fulani extremists, says Solomon Dalyop Mwantiri of ECCVN.
The daily killings and destruction of property have left many people with no means of survival, adds the diocese of Kafanchan. Many women have been widowed and children left fatherless in these attacks, leaving them dependent on outside help.
Most of the displaced are farmers whose fields have been invaded by Fulani herdsmen who allow their cattle to trample the crops into the ground. Says Mwantiri, “Over 1,000 farms have been destroyed in the last two years, exacerbating the looming hunger crisis among local Christians.”
CSI is working with the two dioceses and ECCVN to provide food and relief supplies to those displaced and suffering hunger. One of the recipients of CSI food aid last year is Bala Joseph from Kauru in southern Kaduna whose village was attacked by Fulani extremists one night in December 2020.
“When my wife heard the shots, she hid with our three children”, recalls the 45-year-old. But the attackers entered the house, discovered Bala’s wife and children, shot them and set the house on fire. “My wife was pregnant with our fourth child”, Bala adds, weeping. Despite his terrible loss, he is determined not to give up. “I am thankful to CSI for the food aid and support,” he says.
Last year, Christian Solidarity International (CSI) provided food to nearly 15,000 people in need in these areas of Nigeria.
About Christian Solidarity International:
Founded over 40 years ago, CSI is an international Christian human rights organization, campaigning for religious liberty and human dignity, and assisting victims of religious persecution, victimized children and victims of catastrophe. CSI delivers emergency food assistance, medical treatment, and other lifesaving aid to victims of religious persecution and natural disasters in Iraq, Syria, Egypt, Nigeria, South Sudan, Pakistan, and other hotspots around the globe. CSI is currently the only organization working to liberate Christians and other South Sudanese forced into slavery by government-backed forces during the Sudanese civil war. For more information visit https://csi-usa.org.
