Aid workers in Borno State say thousands of Nigerians still live in fear of Boko Haram and have no intention of returning home, reports The Guardian.
Nigeria’s government claims the insurgents are defeated, but the continued threat posed by Boko Haram was underlined on 16 January when twin suicide bombings killed at least two people at a university in Borno’s capital, Maiduguri.
Chibok, from where more than 200 schoolgirls were abducted by Boko Haram in 2014, is at the centre of Borno.
Adrian Ouvry of Mercy Corps said aid workers had been led to believe there would be an imminent mass return but, “out of all the people [in the camps] we spoke to, not a single one said they were about to return, even though there is an urgent need to do so, to plant before the rains come in late May”.
Mass hunger is now adding to the humanitarian crisis already prevalent across much of the region.
Ouvry added that homes have been destroyed or are being occupied by others displaced by Boko Haram activity.
The Church is doing its best to meet some of the multiple needs in Borno.
Nigeria is the 12th most difficult place to live as a Christian, according to the Open Doors 2017 World Watch List.