UN to Increase Humanitarian Operations in the North-East

The United Nations has pledged to scale up its humanitarian intervention operations in the North-East in continuance of its efforts to support and sustain the victims of the insurgency in the region. This assurance was made by Sir Mark Lowcock, the UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, on September 13 during a working visit to Maiduguri, the Borno State capital. Sir Mark who led a delegation said that the visit to the North-East as well as to Niger was intended to avail the organization of an opportunity for a first-hand assessment of the situation and the effectiveness of the UN’s response in the Lake Chad. 17 million people require humanitarian assistance in the Lake Chad Basin, out of which 8.5 million were in North-East Nigeria. The UN chief said he would present his findings to world leaders at the UN General Assembly this week.