Food Insecurity in Nigeria’s IDP Camp Combatted by Life for Relief and Development USA (LIFE)’s Ramadan Food Basket Project

In the current state of the world, where conflict and strife lurk around every corner, over 122 million people have been forcibly displaced from their homes. While millions seek refuge in bordering or foreign countries, many must live as strangers in their own homelands, internally displaced.

Since the 2009 Boko Haram uprising, over three million people in Nigeria have been displaced. With one of the largest Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) populations in Africa, many Nigerians have been forced to seek shelter and rebuild a life in IDP camps. Along with internal tensions, severe flooding, like the 2022 nationwide floods that affected 4.4 million people, has further added to the IDP crisis faced by Nigeria.

for these IDP, food insecurity is one of many challenges they face. In general, over 40% of the population lives below the poverty line, with nearly 31 million Nigerians currently experiencing acute food insecurity. Further exacerbating conditions, food inflation reached 40.87% in June 2024, leaving Nigeria in the ‘serious hunger’ category, with a rank of 109 out of 125 on the 2023 Global Hunger Index.

This inaccessibility to food has the most impact on vulnerable children in Nigeria. An estimated 35 million children under the age of five are malnourished, and of them, approximately 100 children die every hour due to malnutrition.

With the compounded effects of being internally displaced in a country that faces acute food insecurity, women and children make up most of the residents in IDP camps. Many camps are overcrowded, lacking reliable food, clean water, and healthcare and heavily relying on humanitarian aid.

To combat the food insecurity faced by these vulnerable individuals, Life for Relief and Development USA (LIFE) delivered food baskets to 150 families in the Makarahuta IDP Camp and host community, Bauchi State, Nigeria. From February 20, 2025, to February 27, 2025, 150 Ramadan food baskets were distributed to those most in need, alleviating the financial strain on individuals preparing for the month of fasting. Due to the increased cost of food and high demand, families often experience anxiety during Ramadan which can complicate supply efforts.

Provided with necessary food items that would otherwise be unaffordable, recipients were elated as the food baskets were a source of joy and relief, especially to those with young children. For the beneficiaries, life has become synonymous with cruelty and suffering. The generosity of the donors and the efforts of LIFE’s staff were almost alien to these vulnerable individuals.

For one recipient, an elderly gentleman with a walking stick, the contents of his food basket were beyond his expectations. Due to its weight and his physical limitations, he was assisted in carrying the food basket out of the distribution site. This humble act of kindness from a member of LIFE’s staff left the gentleman overcome with tears of gratitude. This moment poignantly underscored the profound impact and necessity of LIFE and its donor’s charitable efforts.

For these beneficiaries, your donations and LIFE’s initiatives are a ray of hope and compassion in a world of hardship and struggles.