Lake Chad Basin crisis deepens with rising insecurity and displacement, UNHCR warns
via Punch Nigeria3 min read
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees UNHCR has expressed alarm over the deteriorating humanitarian situation in the Lake Chad Basin, encompassing parts of Cameroon, Chad, Niger, and Nigeria. Andrew Wyllie, UNHCR Deputy Director for the West and Central Africa Bureau, stated that escalating violence and displacement threaten regional stability. Over 3.5 million people are currently displaced, and 8.2 million require humanitarian assistance. Security incidents increased by 80 percent between January 2024 and April 2026, with nearly 1,800 incidents and over 5,700 fatalities recorded between September 2025 and May 2026. Borno State in northeastern Nigeria is identified as the crisis epicenter, with non-state armed group attacks, military operations, and insecurity along routes forcing families from their homes and limiting humanitarian access. The conflict's effects are spreading to Nigeria's North-West and Middle Belt. Since January 2026, over 77,500 people have been displaced across the four countries, including 16,000 refugees from northeastern Nigeria to Niger鈥檚 Diffa region. Violence is increasingly crossing national borders, with attacks in Cameroon鈥檚 Far North and Chad鈥檚 Lac Province, where 60,000 people have been displaced, leading to a state of emergency in May. Civilians bear the greatest burden, with one in five households feeling unsafe. Women and girls face increased risks of violence, and specialized protection services are overstretched. The number of
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This summary was AI-generated from a story originally published by Punch Nigeria.
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