10/19/2020 Africa (International Christian Concern) – The United Nations will meet tomorrow, seeking to raise $1 billion in aid for Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger, three countries “at the center of a humanitarian crisis.”
The crisis in these three countries is, as Undersecretary-General Mark Lowcock reported, “a record number of people, more than 13 million, needing humanitarian assistance across the border areas of Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger, and most of them are children.” The billion dollars would go towards direct aid for those refugees.
Due to the operations of extremist groups, families face starvation, children face malnutrition, and all three countries have tripled their food crisis numbers. Lowcock said governments in the region need to take back control over their countries from extremist groups, such as Boko Haram. Left unchecked, these extremists will continue to destroy livelihoods.
Distributing aid in these countries is growing more difficult as aid workers are also targeted by extremists. Christians in Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger are also targeted by the extremists and must ear attack on top of facing starvation.
For interviews, please contact Olivia Miller, Communications Coordinator: press@persecution.org.
