The European Commission has announced a €235 million humanitarian aid package aimed at supporting vulnerable populations across West and Central Africa, including Nigeria.
According to the Commission, the funding is targeted at communities affected by conflict, food insecurity, and displacement, as well as host communities and populations in hard-to-reach areas.
Out of the total allocation, Nigeria is set to receive €33 million to address its share of humanitarian challenges.
A breakdown of the intervention showed that €75 million would go to the Central Sahel, over €16.6 million to Cameroon, €22 million to the Central African Republic, more than €72 million to Chad, €4.8 million to Mauritania, and over €6 million to coastal countries.
An additional €6.4 million has been earmarked for regional projects.
European Commissioner for Equality, Preparedness and Crisis Management, Hadja Lahbib, described the situation in the region as severe and multifaceted.
“West and Central Africa are facing a storm of humanitarian crises, driven by conflict, poverty, hunger, instability, and climate shocks,” she said.
Reflecting on a recent visit to Chad, Lahbib highlighted the human toll of the crisis.
“Last year in Chad, I saw the human cost with my own eyes: families who had fled with nothing but the clothes on their backs, their homes lost, their livelihoods destroyed. For millions of people, humanitarian aid is not a choice.
“It is food on the table, clean water, medicine, shelter, and a chance for their children to learn again.
”The European Union will always stand with people in crisis, as a reliable and principled humanitarian partner, to save lives, ease suffering, and bring hope where it is needed most.”
The Commission noted that the region continued to grapple with overlapping humanitarian emergencies, largely driven by conflict and worsened by climate change and local governance challenges.
It identified the Central Sahel and Lake Chad regions as the epicentres of the crisis, with violence spilling into coastal countries and triggering widespread displacement within and across borders.
The statement also pointed to the impact of the ongoing Sudan crisis on neighbouring Chad, alongside persistent instability in parts of Nigeria, Cameroon, and the Central African Republic.
The EU said the intervention is designed to address urgent humanitarian needs while supporting resilience in one of the world’s most crisis-affected regions.
