Written question asked by Andrew Mitchell (Conservative) on Monday, 14 July 2008, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Wednesday, 16 July 2008. It was answered by Douglas Alexander (Labour) on Tuesday, 22 July 2008 on behalf of the Department for International Development.

Nigeria: Armed Conflict

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment he has made of the humanitarian implications of the breakdown of the ceasefire between the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta and the Nigerian Government.

Answer: The humanitarian situation in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria is already serious, with high levels of violence and insecurity, and very little provision of basic social services. Department for International Development (DFID) staff are unable to travel to the Niger Delta for security reasons, so we have been unable to make a direct assessment of the current humanitarian situation. DFID is in regular contact with the Office for Conflict and Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), the World Food Programme (WFP), Médecins sans Frontières (MSF), Save the Children (SCF) and Oxfam, and none of them reported any change to the humanitarian situation in the Niger Delta.The recent breakdown of the two-week Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) cease fire will have done nothing to improve the situation in the Niger Delta. The UK remains committed to helping the Nigerian Government work towards a peaceful and sustainable solution to the underlying causes of instability in the region.

Secondary information