Tens of thousands of people are dying of hunger in the area of West Africa where Boko Haram militants are active, the United Nations humanitarian coordinator for the region, told a news conference on Friday.
About 65,000 people are in a “catastrophe” or “phase five” situation, according to a food security assessment by the IPC, the recognised classification system on declaring famines.
Reuters reported that Phase five applies when, even with humanitarian assistance, “starvation, death and destitution” are evident.
“The tragedy of using the F word is that when you apply it it’s too late,” said Toby Lanzer, who has also worked in South Sudan, Darfur and Chechnya.
Boko Haram militants have killed about 15,000 people and displaced more than two million in a seven-year insurgency and they still launch deadly attacks despite having been pushed out of the vast swathes of territory they controlled in 2014.
“This is the first time I’ve come across people talking about phase five. The reason for that was simply a lack of access. We couldn’t get to places,” Lanzer said.
“Because of the insecurity sown almost exclusively by Boko Haram, people have missed three planting seasons.”