"You notice one thing straightaway - the children here hardly ever laugh," says a helper at Malkohi camp, close to the Nigerian city of Yola. The camp now accommodates almost 300 people who were liberated in early May from Boko Haram captivity. About half are under 18 years old. Every third child is malnourished.

Lami Musa is the mother of probably the camp’s youngest resident. One day before she was rescued by soldiers, she gave birth to a baby girl. During the army’s liberation operation, several women were killed by the terrorists. "I just held my daughter tight and protected her with my body," the young mother said.

Halima Hawu was less fortunate. One of her three children was run over and killed as they were being abducted by the terrorists. During the army operation, she was shot in the leg by a Nigerian soldier, as Boko Haram members used the women as human shields. "The pain is still there but perhaps the worst is now behind us," she hopes.

Three-year-old Babaka spent six months in capitivity. Food was provided irregularly. There was just some maize for the children every now and then, former captives say. When the soldiers came, the little boy was close to death from starvation. Babaka is still extremely weak. He has not yet received adequate medical care in the camp.

Babaka’s mother was taken to the nearby hospital in Yola, together with about 20 other seriously injured people. Someone who had been in front of them as they fled trod on a landmine. The massive explosion badly injured the woman and killed a baby she was carrying.

Apart from some donated clothing, little international aid has reached the women and children at Malkohi camp. Much is in short supply, especially medical personnel. There is no trace of the doctor who was supposed to be on duty. The provisional clinic is being run by just two nurses and a midwife.

"I don’t understand why our national emergency agency doesn’t do more," says social worker Turai Kadir (seen here). She acted on her own initiative and found a doctor to take care of the children worst affected by malnutrition. That is really the task of NEMA, the Nigerian Emergency Management Agency, but it is totally overwhelmed.

Regina Musa recently returned from the US to teach psychology at Yola University. Now she is helping provide psychological care for the women and children in the camp. "The women have demonstrated unbelievable strength," Musa said. During the traumatic period of captivity many cared for children who were not their own. "We have to help them understand how important that was."