The ongoing humanitarian crisis in North East Nigeria, driven by the Boko Haram insurgency and the counter-insurgency operations by government and security forces, has left 7.9 million people1 in need of humanitarian assistance. Of these, more than 1.8 million are internally displaced. Borno, Adamawa and Yobe (BAY) States host the highest proportion of internally displaced persons, 54 per cent of them female.2 The current situation in the most conflict affected states (the BAY states) presents a major challenge to efforts to mitigate the impact and spread of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in Nigeria. This is due to pre-existing vulnerabilities as well as overcrowded settlements inside and outside internally displaced person (IDP) camps, which make social distancing almost impossible.

To contain the spread of the virus, the Government of Nigeria has introduced several measures, including restricting movement and social gatherings. These measures, which are in line with global guidelines, are affecting humanitarian access and operations, resulting in a decreased capacity to reach the affected populations.

As women make up 81 per cent of the overall crisis population and 87 per cent of the newly displaced,3 the reduction in life-saving and recovery interventions has a disproportionate impact on women and girls. Similar to any other global emergency, the primary and secondary effects of COVID-19 will impact the lives of women, men, boys and girls differently, and emerging evidence suggests that the pandemic is magnifying existing inequalities, including gender inequalities. Therefore, understanding the gendered impact of COVID-19 is paramount to designing and implementing humanitarian assistance that effectively meets the needs of the affected population.

To achieve this, UN Women, CARE International and Oxfam conducted a joint Rapid Gender Analysis in Borno, Adamawa and Yobe States to understand the gender-related and comparative impact of COVID-19 on women, men, boys and girls. The purpose of this Rapid Gender Analysis is to inform the design, programming, implementation and monitoring of humanitarian response towards COVID-19, particularly for the North East region in Nigeria.