In this piece, MUHAMMAD SABIU reports the growing scourge of malnutrition in the North and how insecurity continues to aid the spread in this regard.
One of the effects of the Boko Haram insurgency in the northeastern zone and by extension the entire northern region is the scourge of malnutrition sadly tearing through all age barriers. The unrelenting spread of the terror of insurgency has rendered many farming communities useless, thereby affecting food supply, with increasing a number of internally displaced persons.
The Boko Haram phenomenon which started in 2009 has metamorphosed into a war between religious fundamentalists and Nigeria’s Federal Government, ravaging all the six states in the northeastern zone: Borno, Adamawa, Taraba, Bauchi, Gombe and Yobe.
This war, according to recent statistics released by the United Nations and obtained by the Nigerian Tribune, had claimed 27,000 lives across the northern region. What is equally worrisome is that an estimated 22,000 children are said to be missing in the report while, another statement released by the United Nations International Cultural and Educational Fund (UNICEF) has it that over 250, 000 children suffer acute malnutrition within the region.
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Indeed, malnutrition, which simply means a lack of healthy foods in the diet, or an excessive intake of unhealthy foods, leading to physical harm, has become a monster in the region.
Unfortunately most of the northern states especially those largely affected by the Boko Haram onslaught are yet to tackle the menace. Investigations by the Nigerian Tribune have it that because of the war on terror which has led to the destruction of health centres, facilities as well as farmlands, many babies within the period under review have not enjoyed exclusive breastfeeding. It was learnt that those mothers who found solace in respective camps for internally displaced persons are not bothered about breastfeeding their babies. A source who pleaded for anonymity revealed that what is paramount for them is how to escape from the war-ravaged areas.
For instance, Maryam Ismail told Nigerian Tribune, that it is difficult to feed. She stated that since the insurgency started, many have died of starvation with children suffering the most.
“When the fight and the killing started, all we could do was escape for dear life. I really pity my child for not giving him enough breast milk as my main concern then was how to escape and leave Maiduguri. When a doctor who was on a routine check told me after we got to the IDP camp that my child was malnourished, I didn’t really know what that meant. Many children are famished; many have died out of starvation and malnourishment,” she said.
Nigerian Tribune equally gathered that the Boko Haram onslaught has made it difficult for nursing mothers to receive proper medical attention too.
A journalist who covered the insurgency in Gombe recalled that health facilities were not there to assist in the treatment of these malnourished children.
According to him, some of the health facilities that could be seen in the camps were provided by development partners like the Save the Children, WHO, UNICEF, ICRC, among others.
An estimated 2 million people have been rendered homeless since the insurgency started 10 years ago. According to the statement, they were not only displaced but their farmlands as well as source of income were affected too.
However, worried by the menace, Governor Nasir el-rufai of Kaduna State has taken steps and equally called for concerted effort in arresting the scourge. One of the steps was the establishment of the Kaduna State Emergency Nutrition Action Plan under the supervision of the wife of the governor, Ummi el-Rufai. According to the governor’s wife, in one of her interviews with the media, over 12,000 children had so far been treated at the various centres.
This was a far cry from tackling the menace as only five out of the 23 local government areas have so far enjoyed the gesture. Even though, there is the political commitment by the state government to end the menace , the support of development partners like the Save the Children, UNICEF, WHO would not be wished away as they played and still play critical roles in ending malnutrition in the state.
But investigations revealed that certain factors have been adduced to have significantly led to the increasing number of malnourished children in the state.
Mallam Isa, a farmer, blamed the menace of malnutrition on the inability of parents to provide balanced diet for their children. According to him, “You find parents feeding their wards on cereal alone instead of providing them with other supplements like eggs, beans and chicken which are readily available in the rural communities.”
Similarly, a concerned parent, Emmanuel Ado told the Nigerian Tribune that “Our local foods are highly nutritious as they contain all the nutrients that children need; but they have been abandoned for chips and eggs, instant noodles which are not in any way healthy meals. Again, the scourge of insurgency is making things worse. Many farmlands have been destroyed, thereby affecting the food supply chain that once helped. The tragedy is that we have ended up with malnourished children, and adults who are dying of starvation. Many people have started coming down with diseases: heart and kidney impairments.
“It’s a shame that the government has to train people who will in turn teach mothers the right formula and recipe – which from studies seems to be the main problem,” he declared.
Other findings gathered by the Nigerian Tribune attributed the rising cause of malnutrition to poor sanitation. Aside the health and environmental hazards that internally displaced persons are exposed to in the camps, many homes in the North are largely unkempt. A sanitation officer, Nusaiba Shuaibu, noted that young mothers are lazy.
“Today, many of the IDP camps are not as clean as expected. The occupants are exposed to all kinds of health and environmental hazards. Aside that, any time we visit houses on inspection, we are exposed to how these women keep their home dirty. They eat without washing the plates and flies would be seen on the plates and the same plates would be used to feed the children without being washed.”
Emmanuel Ado added that “very fundamental too is also the nutrition level of these women during pregnancy. For instance, if a pregnant mother is iodine-deficient, she would definitely deliver a brain-damaged child or a child that suffers from some other extreme conditions.
“The tragedy is that the child has already been denied the capacity of achieving his/her full potential. But even the simplest of precautions like the consumption of iodized salt that would help mitigate the problem is lacking. Moving forward, there are hard pills that must be swallowed if this problem is to be solved. Aside the scourge of the insurgency, early marriage, unplanned families, and polygamy must be discouraged.
“When the Emir of Kano, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, argued that it doesn’t make sense to have four wives and many children that can’t be adequately catered for, many Muslims spoke against him. But Sanusi is very right in his conclusions about the causes of some of these problems. Certainly, these conversations must be placed on the front burner as part of a holistic solution to the problem, while remedial solutions are being implemented.”
It was against this background that the Save The Children Advocacy and Campaign decided to hold a workshop for critical stakeholders in order to find ways to eliminating the scourge of malnutrition. Participants were drawn from civil society groups, the media, community leaders, state governments and non-governmental organisations.
Addressing the participants during the three-day workshop in Kaduna, the Save The Children Advocacy and Campaign project manager, Oluseyi Abejide informed that “It is pertinent to note that nutrition planning and budgeting are critical components of improving nutrition status of children and women including adolescents, and also facilitate in increasing accountability between citizens and decision makers. Therefore, analyzing nutrition budgets in relation to cost plans and expenditures enables a range of stakeholders – including civil society groups, and the media – to hold policy makers to account for commitments made at various levels.”
Though the Kaduna State governor has earmarked N3 billion to tackle the issue of malnutrition, it is expected that others must follow suit in ensuring that the scourge of malnutrition is fought in ensuring that the gradual decimation of the North is stopped. The ravaging ruins brought upon the North by insurgency and a general lack of security must be addressed if the full potential of the North is to be realised once again.
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