With a large and diverse population, dynamic economy, and an increasing regional and global presence, Nigeria is a nation that is at the forefront of change in Africa. Despite the rapid advances economically and socially in recent years, parts of Nigeria continue to be in need of development and humanitarian assistance, most notably the conflict-affected states of the North-East region.
Since 2009, the states of Borno, Adamawa and Yobe have been impacted by a regional armed conflict between insurgent groups and the national armed forces that has resulted in over 27,000 people killed and 1.8 million people forced to flee their homes and farms. Of those displaced by the violence 80% are women and children, with one in four of those children under the age of five.
The ongoing conflict in the North-East continues to disrupt the lives of large numbers of people on a daily basis, with humanitarian assistance providing wide ranging support to communities across the region.
Since 2017, ACTED has implemented life-saving programs in North-East Nigeria from our office in Maiduguri, the capital of Borno state. Our projects are targeted at the most vulnerable populations and seek to provide communities with essential support and services allowing us to reach hundreds of thousands of people with assistance across the region with our national and international partners
Reaching the most vulnerable on the frontline of the conflict and building resilience
Our focus is on both serving the immediate needs of conflict-affected populations, and on building resilience and sustainable development that provides for the longer term welfare of communities.
In the North-East crisis area, our programs deliver humanitarian assistance by providing food assistance, shelter, and basic essential supplies to those displaced by violence. We are also one of the leading providers of Camp Coordination and Camp Management (CCCM) in the region, serving internally displaced populations who are taking refuge in temporary camps or informal settlements.
In Maiduguri we implement an urban disaster risk management program helping to build local capacity to deal with the effects of shocks such as fire, flood and further population movements.
Outside the North-East, ACTED is focused on development assistance through implementing economic empowerment and resilience building projects in both urban and rural areas.
ACTED is a lead player in Camp Coordination and Camp Management (CCCM) in Northeast Nigeria where we manage informal and formal internally displaced people (IDP) camps housing more than 35,000 people as of the end of 2019. Our CCCM teams work to ensure that IDPs have access to the services they need by liaising with service providers and local government. We also ensure that residents views and wishes are represented through governance structures that provide for community empowerment and that emergency response and mitigation procedures are in place within the camps.
Within the city of Maiduguri, ACTED is an integral part of a consortium to improve urban resilience and disaster risk reduction through our AGORA framework. This is a multi-year project that supports local government and community organizations in the city so that they can develop resilience strategies that benefit all communities in Maiduguri.