UNITED NATIONS, Rabi'II 29, 1436, February 18, 2015, SPA -- U.N. Assistant Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Kyung-wha Kang Tuesday called international support “pivotal’ in preventing further destabilization of the region. “Efforts to ensure security and provide protection to civilians must be beefed up, and aid organizations must be able to secure greater access to populations in need of assistance,” Kang said following her seven-day visit to Central Africa. Kang warned that Cameroon is facing an increasingly complex and multifaceted humanitarian situation. She expressed deep concern about the growing impact of attacks by Boko Haram in neighboring Nigeria and Cameroon that has prompted roughly 40,000 Nigerians to seek refuge in Cameroon and displacing tens of thousands of Cameroonians. “I am particularly concerned by reports of attacks on villages, kidnapping of civilians, recruitment of young men and indoctrination of children,” Kang said. Given such developments, the humanitarian appeal for Cameroon has more than doubled in a year, as the 2015 Strategic Response Plan seeks $264 million compared to $126 million in 2014. --SPA 11:25 LOCAL TIME 08:25 GMT www.spa.gov.sa/w