Child malnutrition rises 160% in northeastern Nigeria, warns FHI 360

FHI 360 nutrition coordinator, Solomon Atuman, has said compared to last year, there has been a 160 percent increase in the number of children admitted to its facilities for treatment of moderate and severe wasting, which represents the most immediate, visible, and life-threatening form of malnutrition.

He stated that the alarming increase in acute malnutrition was recorded in the northern states of Borno, Adamawa and Yobe and associated this with flooding, harvest failure, poor access to basic services like clean water and hygiene, as well as the movement of people from closed camps for internally displaced persons.

Atuman said the situation in northeast Nigeria is grave, as he called for increased support to address the critical health and nutritional needs of communities, especially women and children.

According to him, “Admissions to FHI 360’s treatment facilities from February to September of 2023 have surged to the highest levels ever recorded since we began this work in 2017.

“In the past eight months, a staggering 15,781 malnourished children were admitted to our facilities for treatment of moderate and severe wasting, including those with complications. This is an increase of approximately 160 percent, compared to the previous year.

“In August alone, an average of 50 severely malnourished children was admitted each week to FHI 360 stabilisation centres in Borno State.

“After last year’s flooding, harvests failed and many families didn’t have access to enough food, or enough nutritious food. Prices have gone up for food, fertiliser and fuel, and funding to respond to this crisis has decreased.

“More people are fleeing their homes as instability increases, leading to overcrowding in already congested displacement camps. Some malnutrition treatment centres in the region have been forced to close due to insecurity or a lack of funding.

“Also, there was an outbreak of many diseases: an upsurge in malaria cases because there was no chemoprophylaxis for seasonal malaria; and diarrheal diseases because of a lack of basic services like access to clean water and hygiene. For children, these are part of the underlying cause of malnutrition.”

Mr Atuman declared that FHI 360’s work in the region had centered on both the prevention and treatment of malnutrition and its complications, through the involvement of community nutrition to improve case detection and then referral to FHI360’s treatment facilities for treatment.

He declared that the cure rate for malnutrition at the FHI 360’s treatment facilities is over 90 percent, adding that to prevent a relapse, the children are followed up with home visits to ensure they are protected from the underlying drivers of malnutrition while their mothers are counsellled on appropriate infant and young child feeding practices.

To get the buy-in of men, he stated that father-and-father support groups were created so that men could come together to discuss issues around maternal, infant, and young child nutrition, as well as ensure that pregnant and lactation women receive iron and folic acid supplementation.

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