SW News: Pontifical aid outfit Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) has launched two new projects for extending help to displaced Christians in Nigeria and Mozambique in Africa.

The first project for displaced Christians in Nigeria will benefit St. Paul’s Parish in Pulka, which hosts many refugees from Maiduguri, the capital of Borno State. The region is prone to Islamist attacks and holds a large number of refugees. However, the displaced people are suffering from an acute shortage of potable water. ACN’s Italian office is providing funds to dig a well with a solar pump to provide clean water to the people.

The Nigerian people have been subjected to the violence of Boko Haram Islamist outfit for over 10 years. Violence surged drastically in 2014, with more thousands either abducted for ransom or killed in sporadic attacks, targeting Christian villages and churches.

The Diocese of Quelimane in Mozambique, which assists Christian refugees in unrest-hit Cabo Delgado, is the beneficiary of the second project of ACN. The cash received will be used to help the area's 500 displaced households. Islamic terrorists have increased their attacks in the northern Mozambique region of Cabo Delgado, targeting state authorities, the military, police force, and civilians, both Christian and Muslim. Since the insurgency began in 2017, two-thirds of these strikes have targeted civilians, displacing an estimated 730,000 people.