COVID-19: Tackling malnutrition in children, a step towards upholding their right to life-Aisha Buhari

By allcitynews.ng

Concerned about the effects of coronavirus pandemic is having on lives of children, the First Lady of Nigeria, Dr Mrs Aisha Muhammadu Buhari has advocated the need for improved nutrition among  children in the country.

The First Lady, who made this call also highlighted the increasing need for global attention to ‘Severe Acute Malnutrition’ (SAM). She called for proper handling of malnutrition in children, adding that tackling malnutrition in children as a way of upholding their rights to life.

She noted that as the National Nutrition Champion and the founder of Aisha Buhari Foundation, there is need to add her voice to the ongoing advocacy for improving the Nutrition situation in the country in the face of COVID-19 pandemic. Her Foundation is a member of the Nigeria SAM consortium which targets advocacy for sustainable intervention towards the prevention and treatment of Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM) in Nigeria.

Experts in the field have posited that proper nutrition strengthens the immune system to combat most illnesses including the novel corona virus; malnutrition on the other hand weakens the immune system thereby increasing susceptibility to diseases and eventual death and this puts the vulnerable children who are under five years of age (over 45 per cent of them are already malnourished) in Nigeria at a higher risk.

Before the outbreak of coronavirus, malnutrition has been one of the major causes of mortality and underdevelopment among children under the age of five in Nigeria. With the emergence of the pandemic and subsequent restriction of movement, the situation has worsened, resulting in the shortage of food supply. Consequently, this has led to a significant increase in the number of acutely malnourished children requiring urgent attention and collective action.

Mrs. Buhari who strongly believed that making provisions for this category of children is a step towards upholding their rights to good nutrition and their right to life, also acknowledged the efforts of Federal Government through the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 in facilitating the supply of relief materials including food and cash to millions of vulnerable Nigerians across the country to help cushion the effect of COVID-19 pandemic.

Furthermore, she is aware that the Federal Ministry of Health in collaboration with Nutrition stakeholders have developed a COVID-19 Pandemic Health Sector Response Plan to ensure the integration of nutrition because of the central importance of good nutrition to the socio-economic development of the country.

The First Lady in the statement made available to allcitynews.ng by Aliyu Abdullahi, Special Assistant to the President on Media & Publicity (Office of the First Lady), called on all key stakeholders to do following:

1. Government stakeholders at federal and state levels; should commit funds to the prevention and treatment of all forms of malnutrition, ensuring that all policies and services required for treatment of malnutrition including the CMAM centres are supported to function optimally particular in this time.

2. Humanitarian support programmes; Private sector Interventions and donations by well-meaning Nigerians should focus on ensuring that food palliatives factor in the necessary dietary diversification by adding food commodities like millet, groundnut, beans, soya etc. for the prevention of malnutrition and that children currently suffering from any form Malnutrition are supplied with micronutrient powder, action meals and Ready to Use Therapeutic Food as treatment solutions.

3. Community stakeholders, families and caregivers should ensure that food items meant for malnourished children are actually given to the children who need them for their health and well-being.

Finally, the First Lady believed that in taking these actions, we as a county will be protecting children from the scourge of SAM and in the long term, taking steps towards attaining holistic health of the Nigerian population and in line with the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) to leave no one behind.