MSF Nigeria: Violence in Borno drives new displacement, leaving over 5,000 people in dire conditions

24 April 2026 - Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders (MSF) has launched an emergency response in Gwoza Local Government Area (LGA), Borno State, northeast Nigeria, following a new wave of displacement triggered by armed violence.

On 3 March 2026, attacks in Ngoshe reportedly resulted in a significant number of deaths and abductions. More than 5,000 people have fled their homes and are now living in extremely precarious conditions in Pulka, approximately 15 kilometres away within Gwoza LGA.

Many of those displaced—including women, children and older people—arrived with little to no belongings. With no adequate shelter available, families are sleeping in open spaces and along the streets.

“Our homes were bombed, everything we owned was bombed,” says Safiya Mohammed Aga, a displaced person from Ngoshe. “We fled to Pulka with almost nothing, some of us came without clothes or anything at all. We had to leave everything behind and run.’’

Access to basic necessities such as food, safe water, sanitation and hygiene services remains critically insufficient. As a result, the risk of disease outbreaks is increasing, particularly among children and other vulnerable groups.

MSF started a four-week emergency intervention on 10 April 2026 to support newly displaced people in Pulka. More than 900 families have been provided with non-food items, including cooking utensils, sleeping mats, mosquito nets, jerrycans and buckets. MSF teams have also distributed 884 dignity kits including menstrual hygiene products, soap and oral hygiene items to people who arrived in highly vulnerable conditions.

In addition, the team started rehabilitation of sanitation facilities and, to address urgent water needs, MSF has begun the daily delivery of safe drinking water, currently providing 16,000 litres per day. Health promotion teams are also conducting hygiene awareness activities to reduce the risk of disease outbreaks. Despite these efforts, the scale of needs far exceeds the current response.

“People urgently need food and improved access to water, sanitation and hygiene services,” says Abdoulaye Mahmoudoune, MSF Emergency Field Coordinator. “MSF is responding, but we cannot meet these overwhelming needs alone. Families who fled violence are now struggling to survive in extremely precarious conditions. Other humanitarian organisations must urgently step in.”

Gwoza LGA has endured years of conflict and repeated displacement, leaving communities with severe humanitarian and medical needs. Health facilities are under constant strain, while humanitarian assistance continues to decline.

“Funding gaps and a broader reduction in humanitarian assistance across Borno State are putting critical healthcare and life-saving services at serious risk,” Mahmoudoune says.

Within Gwoza LGA, MSF has been supporting Gwoza General Hospital since August 2025, providing emergency medical care and facilitating referrals. MSF also supports maternal and newborn care in Kushari in collaboration with the Ministry of Health and runs nutrition programmes in Maiduguri for children under five suffering from acute malnutrition.

MSF calls on humanitarian organisations to urgently scale up assistance in Pulka, particularly food aid and water, sanitation and hygiene interventions. The organisation also urges donors to increase sustained funding for healthcare in northeast Nigeria, as ongoing shortfalls continue to undermine access to life-saving services.