The militant Islamist group Boko Haram has forced 500,000 children to flee in the last five months, and overall, 1.4 million children are “on the run” in north-eastern Nigeria and surrounding countries, UNICEF reported.
Of the 1.2 million children who have fled northern Nigeria, more than half are under 5 years old.
“Each of these children running for their lives is a childhood cut short,” said Manuel Fontaine, UNICEF Regional Director for West and Central Africa, in a statement.
“It’s truly alarming to see that children and women continue to be killed, abducted and used to carry bombs,” he added.
He said UNICEF has received less than one-third of the $50 million it requested for operations in the region but nevertheless the agency is in “full operational mode,” the Associated Press reported.
UNICEF is partnering with the governments of Nigeria, Cameroon, Chad and Niger in its work with children, but received only 32 percent of the budget it needs for its humanitarian efforts.
“Because of this, over 124,000 children in the conflict-torn area have not received measles vaccinations, more than 83,000 lack access to safe water, and over 208,000 are not in school,” a UNICEF statement said.
“With more refugees and not enough resources, our ability to deliver lifesaving assistance on the ground is now seriously compromised,” said Mr. Fontaine. “Without additional support, hundreds of thousands of children in need will lack access to basic health care, safe drinking water and education.”
At a U.N. news conference in Geneva Friday, spokesman Christophe Boulierac asked the world to refocus attention on the 219 school girls abducted in April 2014, who are still missing.
In the six-year conflict with Boko Haram, 20,000 people have been killed and at least 2.1 million people displaced.
Boko Haram, whose name means “Western education is forbidden,” pledged its allegiance to the Islamic State in March and seeks to impose Shariah law in Nigeria. More than 1,000 people have been killed since March 2015 when Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari was elected and pledged to eliminate the jihadist group.
