HIGHLIGHTS
Boko Haram-related attacks in Cameroon and Chad continue to escalate
October 10 suicide bombings in Chad result in temporary suspension of relief services at displacement camps
Insecurity is contributing to decreased agricultural production, exacerbating food needs.
KEY DEVELOPMENTS
Suicide bombings and other attacks by Boko Haram have increased in recent months.
Since October 2014, more than 200 Boko Haram-related attacks have resulted in at least 3,700 deaths in Cameroon, Chad, Niger, and Nigeria, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).
Insecurity continues to result in displacement and negatively affect the food security and livelihoods of communities in the region; approximately 4.7 million people in the Lake Chad Basin region are in need of emergency food assistance, according to the UN World Food Program (WFP). Violence at markets and cross-border trade restrictions imposed due to security concerns have increased prices of basic goods. In addition, insecurity has prevented many farmers from accessing their fields.
Heavy rains in August exacerbated poor sanitation and hygiene conditions, leading to disease outbreaks—including cholera—in internally displaced person (IDP) camps and surrounding communities in northern Nigeria’s city of Maiduguri, according to the UN World Health Organization (WHO).