The European Union has announced an emergency humanitarian aid package of €250,000 (over ₦450 million) to assist thousands displaced by recent waves of brutal armed attacks in Benue and Plateau States.
The funds will empower the Nigerian Red Cross to provide life-saving support to 2,500 of the most vulnerable households—roughly 15,000 people—displaced over the past four months. Assistance will cover emergency cash, essential supplies, healthcare, psychosocial support, clean water, and sanitation.
Beyond immediate relief, the initiative will also ramp up protection services and public awareness on health, hygiene, and safety—especially targeting women, children, and repeatedly displaced persons now crammed into overcrowded shelters.
Dire Numbers, Growing Crisis
As of July 2025, more than 615,000 people have been displaced in Benue State and another 65,000 in Plateau State. Many of them, subsistence farmers, have been forced off their land during the critical planting season. With food, clean water, and healthcare in short supply, most now live in squalid IDP camps or makeshift settlements.
This latest aid forms part of the EU’s contribution to the Disaster Response Emergency Fund (DREF) under the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC). Just last month, the EU provided €500,000 to the International Organization for Migration (IOM) for emergency assistance in Benue.
EU Calls for Sustained Action
The EU warns that targeted violence in Benue and Plateau is fueling a deepening humanitarian crisis, with new threats emerging weekly. It says sustained, coordinated action is critical to avert further disaster.
About DREF and EU Aid
The DREF, launched in 1979, is a rapid-response funding pool backed by donors. National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies tap into it for swift action in small-scale disasters without triggering full-scale international appeals.
The EU, a global leader in humanitarian relief, recently signed an €8 million agreement with the IFRC to support DREF operations. Under this deal, the EU can replenish the fund with up to €12 million for select emergencies.
