UN Suspends Humanitarian Air Service in Northeast Nigeria

UN suspends humanitarian air service in northeast Nigeria over $5.4m funding gap.
The shutdown threatens aid delivery to displaced, hunger-stricken communities in Borno and Yobe.
UN warns millions risk worsening isolation amid global donor fatigue.

The United Nations (UN) has suspended a key humanitarian air service in Nigeria’s conflict-ridden northeast due to a severe funding crisis, raising fears that aid delivery to vulnerable communities could be cut off.

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EKO HOT BLOG reports that the U.N. Humanitarian Air Service (UNHAS), managed by the World Food Programme (WFP), ended its fixed-wing operations last week after nearly a decade of facilitating relief efforts in Borno and Yobe states.

“In 2024, UNHAS fixed-wing flights carried more than 9,000 passengers. Already this year, 4,500 humanitarian staff have relied on the service to reach affected areas,” UN spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric told journalists in New York. He stressed that in regions where roads remain highly unsafe, air transport is vital for reaching people in need.

The shutdown follows repeated warnings that $5.4 million is urgently needed to sustain operations for the next six months. Without this funding, humanitarian workers risk losing safe access to remote, conflict-affected communities.

Dujarric cautioned that the suspension could worsen conditions for millions already grappling with displacement, hunger, and extremist violence. “Without air links, humanitarian workers lose safe access to remote communities. Families may face desperate choices, including unsafe migration, hunger, or exploitation by extremist groups,” he said.

The WFP has also warned of deepening financial strain. In July, it announced that emergency food and nutrition aid for up to 1.3 million people in the northeast may be suspended if funding gaps persist.

While the Nigerian government remains the largest contributor to the humanitarian response, the UN emphasized that international donors are still urgently needed to sustain aid pipelines. Shrinking donor budgets, driven by global economic pressures and competing crises in Gaza, Sudan, and Ukraine, have worsened the funding gap.

“For Nigeria’s northeast, where insurgency has displaced millions, the loss of this air bridge risks deepening isolation at the worst possible time,” the UN warned.

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