Nigeria’s North-West to benefit from European Union’s €557m Aid Package

For over a decade, the majority of Nigeria’s humanitarian crisis has occurred in the north-east, where the deadly terrorist group Boko Haram and its splinter groups have terrorised Borno, Yobe, and Adamawa states.

But the European Union’s announcement Wednesday of €557 million in humanitarian aid with a specific focus on Nigeria’s north-west signals a shift in international recognition of where Nigeria’s deadliest violence now occurs.

The aid, part of the EU’s €1.9 billion 2026 humanitarian budget for Africa, comes as the north-west has quietly overtaken the north-east as Nigeria’s most lethal conflict zone. In the first half of 2025 alone, bandits and insurgents killed at least 2,266 people across northern Nigeria, surpassing the entire death toll for 2024. Zamfara, Katsina, and Sokoto states in the north-west.

“The humanitarian system is under unprecedented strain, and public funding alone will not meet the scale of the crisis,” said Hadja Lahbib, European Commissioner for equality, preparedness and crisis management, speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos. “Europe is taking action, committing an initial €1.9 billion for 2026.”

While international attention and aid have concentrated on the north-east insurgency for years, the north-west has descended into what security analysts now describe as a conflict zone where criminal gangs, cattle rustlers, and increasingly, jihadist networks operate with serious effect.

An estimated 30,000 armed bandits now operate across the region in groups ranging from small gangs to formations of over 1,000 fighters. Over 700,000 people are currently displaced in the north-west alone, driven from their homes by coordinated attacks that feature mass kidnappings, village raids, and systematic cattle rustling.

In August 2025, armed gunmen stormed a mosque in Katsina State, killing at least 30 worshippers. Earlier that month, bandits abducted 50 people in Zamfara State during a single coordinated attack. In July, gunmen killed at least six people and abducted more than 100 others in an assault on the Kairu community in Zamfara.

The EU’s decision to prioritise the north-west represents a significant recalibration of humanitarian priorities. According to EU data, the organisation has provided over €544 million to Nigeria since 2014, with the bulk historically directed to the north-east, where 7.8 million people still require humanitarian assistance.

What distinguishes the north-west crisis from traditional criminality is its evolution. What began as cattle rustling and localised banditry has morphed into what security experts call “criminal insurgency” organised crime, communal grievances, and increasingly, jihadist ideology.

The emergence of groups like Lakurawa, a Mali-based armed organisation with links to Islamic State Sahel Province, exemplifies this dangerous intersection. Between January and June 2025, Lakurawa fighters carried out attacks across Sokoto and Kebbi states, killing 59 civilians and clashing with security forces. Reports indicate growing ties with Boko Haram factions, suggesting the north-west may develop into a second full-scale insurgency theatre.

“The theater of conflict in northwestern Nigeria exhibits a distinct hybrid security landscape where criminal economies, communal grievances, and jihadist insurgency converge,” explains a recent analysis from the Soufan Centre.

The EU’s €557 million allocation to Nigeria and other African countries represents the bloc’s recognition that the humanitarian crisis has evolved beyond the north-east. A separate €14.6 million has been allocated to North Africa to address complex political and economic challenges, while over €415 million is reserved for sudden-onset emergencies worldwide.

Commissioner Lahbib emphasised at Davos the need to mobilise private sector finance and innovative solutions to complement public funding, a signal that traditional aid models may be insufficient for Nigeria’s multi-dimensional crisis.

The aid comes as other international actors are also increasing their focus on the north-west. The International Organisation for Migration and other UN agencies have expanded operations to Zamfara, Katsina, and Sokoto, providing shelter, healthcare, and emergency assistance to displaced populations.

For years, Nigeria’s north-east has dominated international headlines and humanitarian appeals. The EU’s focus on the north-west suggests that donors are finally catching up to the reality that Nigerian communities have lived with for years: banditry and its convergence with extremism now poses as significant a threat as the Boko Haram insurgency, if not greater in terms of geographic spread and civilian casualties.

Whether this shift in international attention translates to improved security and humanitarian conditions for affected communities remains to be seen. But for the millions of Nigerians living under the shadow of banditry in Zamfara, Katsina, and Sokoto, the EU’s announcement represents long-overdue recognition of a crisis that has devastated the region while the world looked elsewhere.

As Commissioner Lahbib noted: “This is a test of solidarity, and Europe is rising to the challenge.” For Nigeria’s north-west, it may also be a test of whether international attention comes too late or just in time.