The United Nations has suspended a crucial humanitarian air service in Nigeria’s northeast, raising fears that aid workers and life-saving supplies could be cut off from communities struggling with conflict and hunger.
The U.N. Humanitarian Air Service (UNHAS), operated by the World Food Programme (WFP), grounded its fixed-wing flights last week after nearly a decade of connecting hard-to-reach areas in Borno and Yobe states.
“In 2024, UNHAS flights carried more than 9,000 passengers. Already this year, 4,500 humanitarian staff have depended on the service,” U.N. spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric said in New York. “For nine years, the service has delivered staff, medicine, and critical cargo to the heart of the crisis. In regions where roads remain deadly, air transport has been the only safe option.”
Funding Gap Threatens Aid Lifeline
The suspension follows repeated warnings that $5.4 million is urgently required to keep the air bridge operational for the next six months. Without it, the humanitarian response risks grinding to a halt.
The WFP, which already faces severe financial constraints, had earlier signaled that 1.3 million people in the northeast could lose access to emergency food and nutrition aid.
“We need $5.4 million just to sustain food and nutrition operations in the region for six months,” WFP’s regional director, Margot van der Velden, explained.
Government Support Not Enough
While the Nigerian government has become the largest domestic backer of the emergency response, the UN emphasized that global donor support remains critical. Without international funding, key aid pipelines may collapse, cutting off vulnerable communities already battered by displacement, violence, and food insecurity.
The UN further warned that the absence of air access could push families into desperate situations—forcing dangerous migration, deepening hunger, or leaving them exposed to extremist groups exploiting the crisis.
A Global Challenge
The crisis in Nigeria is unfolding at a time when donor resources are stretched thin by other emergencies in Gaza, Sudan, and Ukraine. As budgets shrink worldwide, the risk grows that northeast Nigeria—already suffering from 16 years of insurgency—may slip further into isolation.
“For communities here, the loss of this air link could be devastating,” the UN statement concluded. “At a time when they need the most support, they may be left completely cut off.”
