One of the high points of the recent official tour of Nigeria by the United Kingdom’s Foreign Secretary, the Right Honourable James Cleverly, was his visit to the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, to see the operations of the United Nations Humanitarian Air Service (UNHAS) managed by the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP).

Top UN officials in Nigeria, British High Commission officials, Nigerian government representatives and other dignitaries were at the Nnamdi Azikiwe Airport to receive Hon. Cleverly and discuss the UK government’s humanitarian and development cooperation with the UN in Nigeria.

Those in attendance included the UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator, Mr. Matthias Schmale; The Hon. Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Dr Nasir Sani-Gwarzo; the UK High Commissioner to Nigeria, Mr. Richard Montgomery; the Deputy Country Director, World Food Programme, Mr. Guy Adoua; UNICEF Country Representative, Cristian Munduate; the International Committee of the Red Cross Head of Delegation in Nigeria Yann Bonzon; and the Head of Office of OCHA, Trond Jens.

UK Foreign Secretary, Hon James Cleverly (left), the Hon. Permanent Secretary, Humanitarian Affairs, Dr Sani-Gwarzo (centre) and UN Resident Coordinator discuss at the UNHAS centre.

Hon. Cleverly used the opportunity to reaffirm the UK Government’s close partnership and continued collaborations with the UN and the wider humanitarian network to support the work they are doing in Nigeria.

Foreign Secretary James Cleverly said:

“I am very proud of the UK’s humanitarian partnerships in North-East Nigeria. The £38 million we have contributed over the last 12 months is saving the lives of vulnerable people, including women and girls, who are demonstrating extraordinary resilience in the face of this protracted crisis. We will continue to work with the new Nigerian government and other partners to support North-East Nigeria so the whole country can reach its potential. The whole international community must support these efforts.”

UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator Matthias Schmale said:

“On behalf of the humanitarian community, I am deeply grateful for the £38 million contribution of the UK for humanitarian action in the North-East, which is contributing to giving countless people and, notably vulnerable women and children, a second chance. We are facing further funding challenges and are hoping that partners will step up their support to prevent further deterioration of the dramatic food insecurity and malnutrition situation.”

UK Foreign Secretary, Hon James Cleverly (2nd right), the Hon. Permanent Secretary, Humanitarian Affairs, Dr Sani-Gwarzo (3rd right) and other officials review some UNHAS operational information.

The Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development Dr Nasir Sani-Gwarzo said:

“We are keen to intensify cooperation with the UK government, particularly on increasing coordination between our new ministry and other ministries and partners across the humanitarian response. We particularly appreciate the UK’s humanitarian assistance because it is not only financial, but also based on strong coordination, which we are keen to develop further.”

Hon. Cleverly noted that the UK Government’s funding has helped save lives of conflict-affected people in North-East Nigeria – in line with the UK Government’s continued support to enhance food security in Nigeria.

Over 4 million people are facing food insecurity, and 2 million children under 5 are acutely malnourished in Borno, Adamawa and Yobe States. The UK’s funding is helping to protect people, build their resilience to the ongoing food crisis, and prevent famine.

During his visit to Nigeria, which included a stopover in Lagos, the UK Foreign Secretary also pledged the UK’s support and funding to make Nigeria’s agriculture sector more resilient to climate change.

Hon. Cleverly’s official trip to Nigeria, his first, was part of a 3-country visit to Africa (Ghana, Nigeria and Zambia) that focused on building future-focussed, mutually beneficial partnerships.

Dr Onyemaobi is the national communications Officer, United Nations world Food Programme, Nigeria.