Madar (Niamey) - More than 66,000 people have fled continuing violence in northern Nigeria to Niger and Benin since January 2026, according to a note released by the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) on Thursday, 5 November, Anadolu Agency reported.
According to UNHCR, nearly 60,000 of them have arrived in Niger's Diffa and Tahoua regions, along the border with Nigeria, while the rest went to Benin. The agency said the flow is three times that recorded over the same period in 2025.
UNHCR is seeking at least 2 million dollars for November 2026 to January 2027 to meet the most urgent needs of these refugees.
It said more than 34,000 new arrivals in Niger have not yet been registered because of a lack of funding, limiting their access to assistance. In Benin, humanitarian response capacity is limited and the newcomers are adding pressure on host communities and essential services, the same source said.
UNHCR had already reported a funding shortfall in the Sahel: by the end of September it had raised only 27% of the 329.6 million dollars it needs for Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger.
