The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) has said the Boko Haram insurgents operating in the Lake Chad Basin have not been defeated yet contrary to claims by the Nigerian government.

The delegation of the UN Security Council to the Lake Chad Basin disclosed this at a press conference in Abuja on Monday.

The delegation made up of Senegalese Permanent Representative to UNSC; Seck Fode, US Deputy Representative to UNSC; Michele Sison, United Kingdom Representative to UNSC and leader of the delegation; Matthew Rycroft and the UN Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator in Nigeria; Edward Kallon had visited Cameroon, Niger and Chad before visiting Maiduguri to ascertain the level of the crisis in the lake Chad region.

When asked if the Nigerian government’s claim that Boko Haram had been defeated was true, Rycroft said “Boko Haram has not fully been defeated.”

While commending the Nigerian military for the successes recorded so far, Rycroft said much needed to be done to completely end insurgency in the region.

He maintained that the crisis in the Lake Chad Basin was one of the largest and most neglected in the world, stressing that they visited the area in order to shine the spotlight on the crisis so the world and the governments in the region could step up and respond before it’s too late.

“We encourage the government [of Nigeria] to step up and disburse the $1b dollars it pledged at the Oslo conference at the state level and the national level,” the leader of the delegation said.

He said the United Kingdom had significantly increased her response to the humanitarian challenges in the Lake Chad Basin and will continue to do so until the crisis is finally resolved.

While noting that immediate humanitarian solution would not solve the situation, he stressed that “What is needed is a long term development, jobs, environmental issues addressed, education and human rights in place for everyone.”

The Senegalese representative to the UNSC, Seck Fode said African problems required African solutions, stressing that the crisis in the Lake Chad Basin was bigger than imagined.

Fode, who enjoined Nigeria to disburse the $1b she pledged to spend on the humanitarian crisis in the region as soon as possible, equally called on the international community to fulfill its pledges as well.

Also speaking, Edward Kallon said an 18-month timeline has been set to end the humanitarian crisis in Nigeria, stressing that any delay could escalate the crisis.

•Text courtesy of Daily Trust.

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